Journey For Friendship
by shadowtailsrox1224
Summary: Ryan the Cat has a pretty normal life, until he is taken in by a secret organization. New friends, new romances to decline, new enemies, new problems, and new adventures. What could possibly come next? Read to find out! First story ever, so be nice!
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hey guys! This is my first story ever, so I'm just a beginner.

Anyways, please give it a chance!

Disclaimer: I do NOT own any of the Sonic the hedgehog characters, they all belong to SEGA.

But I do own Ryan the cat, sooo…

This story is from a normal POV unless otherwise stated, and when you see text inside brackets, that means that the person is thinking to themselves.

Anyways, enjoy!

Chapter 1

*Normal POV*

A cool October breeze welcomes Ryan as he steps out his front door and onto the porch. Continuing down the sidewalk, his ears twitch with each gust of wind. Clothes aren't exactly his favourite thing in the world, so instead of wearing them he wraps himself with his three tails. Warmth returns to his body, and he continues towards his destination.

(Finally here.) As he reads the sign in front of the building,-Martial Arts National Championships Finals Today-Starring Rouge The Bat and Ryan The Cta-Ryan stops walking and notices the mistake. He switches the t and a so the mistake is fixed. (It would help if these people could spell…) Then he continues inside.

"Could the two finalists please make their way to the fighting ring…" the commentator said over the speakers above Ryan's head.

*Ryan's POV*

When I arrived at the ring, I could see my opponent on the opposite side talking with her support crew. There was a hedgehog running on the spot and motivating Rouge to do the same and a raccoon having a conversation with her. (What do they think they're doing, analyzing me?) I decided to ignore it as I made my way to the center of the ring. As Rouge did the same, I placed my gloved, peach hands on my turquoise, furred hips in impatience.

*Normal POV*

"What's the matter, honey?" Rouge asked. "Can't take the heat?"

"That's none of your business!" Ryan blurted out.

Cracking his knuckles, he stares into Rouge's blue-green eyes searching for some sort of expression. He only receives a sudden wink that catches him off guard.

Becoming even more peeved than before, Ryan takes a fighting stance. "Bring it on, batface." he said with a snarl.

"Ooh, ouch. You just called a bat, a BAT!" Rouge mocked. "That just shows how creative you are!" she said sarcastically. "Just shut up and fight me!" Ryan demanded.

"FIGHT!" the referee shouted at the top of his lungs.

Finally taking her hands off her hips and taking a fighting stance, Rouge teased, "What'ya waitin' for, hun?"

Ryan gave no answer, but instead a quick kick to Rouge's side. Jumping up out of the way and spreading her wings wide, Rouge teased again, "Missed me, buttercup!"

She dropped quickly behind Ryan. He tried to execute a back kick, but Rouge grabbed his foot and turned it over, forcing Ryan to land on his backside. "Nice try, buttercup!" Rouge teased again.

"Quit calling me buttercup!" Ryan snapped back. He quickly lifted his foot and kicked Rouge in the jaw.

She took a few steps back, realigned her jaw, and spoke, "Well that was just a cheap shot!" "What do you expect? This is martial arts, not a nature walk!" Ryan replied while propping himself of the ground with one of his tails.

"Who cares about nature when you have to look as amazing as I do?" Rouge boasted. "You're wearing your ordinary, everyday clothes and a black bandana. If that doesn't spell boring, I don't know what does." Ryan replied. "Ooh, you just crossed the line!" Rouge said angrily.

They both threw a punch at each other simultaneously, but both blocked each other's punches as well. They did the same for a few more punches, and then Rouge suddenly flipped backwards. "This is boring." she stated casually. "Let's make this more amusing."

"SCREW KICK!" Rouge shouted. Ryan couldn't deflect it, so he got kicked square in the face by her sharp boots.

Ryan fell to the floor and the referee counted, "1… 2… 3… 4… 5… 6-" until Ryan got back up.

Blood ran from his nose, down his peach muzzle, and to his mouth. He licked his lips and spoke, "There's nothing like the taste of blood to get the adrenaline pumping." "Hmm, interesting. My signature move didn't take you out." Rouge stated. "Well, I have a signature move of my own, you see." Ryan turned around to face his back to Rouge as he closed his eyes.

Confused as to what Ryan was doing, Rouge simply decided to run up to him and punch him in the back of the head. As she started to run up to him, Ryan was preparing himself.

Rouge threw the punch to the back of Ryan's head, but he moved his head to the right just enough to avoid it and have it only graze the fur on his cheek. Turning his head to see Rouge's surprised face, he gave her a mischievous smirk.

For the split second that this threw Rouge off focus, Ryan's first white-tipped, scarlet red tail popped her in the face. As she stepped back in surprise, Ryan's second white-tipped, moss green tail swept her off her feet. Then he placed his third white-tipped, cadmium yellow tail underneath Rouge. As she fell onto it, he launched her into the air head first.

Ryan then backflipped into the air to join Rouge. After two backwards somersaults, he rotates his body 180° to come face-to-face with her. Unleashing his energy, Ryan screams at the top of his lungs, "THIS ENDS NOW!"

He lifts his right foot above Rouge's head. As she looks up, practically paralyzed in fear, Ryan drop-kicks her square in the face with all his might.

As Rouge lies on the ground, the referee starts to count as Ryan lands on his feet. "1… 2… 3… 4… 5… 6… 7… 8… 9… 10!" Ryan throws his arms in the air as the crowd cheers. "Ryan is the victor!" the referee announced, filled with excitement. Ryan was so happy he could barely stand up straight.

After the awards ceremony, Ryan was walking around being congratulated by many people, when Rouge's support crew walked up to him. The hedgehog spoke first in a monotone voice, "We would like to congratulate you for beating our 'co-worker' Rouge in battle, as we are aware how difficult a task this is. We are also quite impressed with your skill, and we would like to suggest a proposal."

The raccoon then spoke in an Australian accent, "Allow us to introduce ourselves. This blue hedgehog beside me is Sonic, and I'm Marine. Along with Rouge, we are part of the IPIA, short for the Illegal Practices Investigation Agency. We would like to suggest that you come with us to our Head Quarters to further discuss this impending issue."

Rouge walked up to the group and stood beside Sonic. "Thanks for the offer, but I think I'll pass." Ryan said. "I think you misunderstood us, Ryan. We are not suggesting that you come with us, we are obligating you to come with us." Sonic stated. "Sorry, but like I said before, no thank you." Ryan replied. "Fine then, have it your way." Sonic responded.

*Ryan's POV*

Sonic turned his head to face a balcony a distance away from us. He then nodded, and I looked up to see what he was looking at. I saw a two-tailed fox with a handheld machine that shot a dart into my right arm at that very instant.

In shock and confusion, I mumbled, "Hey, what..was…that…foorrrr…" Then I blacked out.

A/N: That's the first chapter!

I know it's kinda short, but the other chapters will be much longer, so don't worry.

I'm hoping to get the next chapter up before school starts…

So stay tuned!

Or whatever you wanna do…

Hope you liked it!

Please R&R!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Hey, here's the second chapter of my first story ever!

From now on, during the A/Ns, I will be joined by Sonic, Shadow, Tails, Amy, Knuckles, Rouge, Cream, Marine, Blaze and Silver!

Everyone: Hey!

Amy: This is so exciting!

Me: Sonic, you do the disclaimer.

Sonic: WAAAAHHH!

Knuckles: Get a grip on yourself!

Sonic: *Pouting* Fine! He does NOT own any of us Sonic the hedgehog characters, they all belong to SEGA. Are you happy now?

Me: I suppose…

But let's get on with the story!

Hope you like it!

Chapter 2

*Ryan's POV*

I slowly opened my eyelids to find myself lying down on a bed in a cell. (I'm in jail!) As I sat up, dazzled, I heard a voice behind me.

"Good, you're finally awake." I turned to see the red echidna with funny-looking hands who was speaking. He opened the cell door and continued, "Come with me." "Why would I do that?" I replied.

(I might have just woken up from a coma or something but I still wasn't going to be bossed around by some random stranger!) "Do you want to live in this cell for the rest of your life?" the echidna paused, "Because it can be arranged." "Fine, I'll come with you." I mumbled. (Ok, scratch that last thought. I guess I willbe bossed around by some random stranger after all. Jeez, jail people sure are pushy!)

We arrived in a very large room with high ceilings and many small, dim lights. The echidna led me between two long tables and to the very back of the room.

There was a single chair facing away from us. A purple cat emerged from the darkness. "Knuckles, we've been waiting for you. Let's get started." the cat stated. "Certainly, Blaze." Knuckles replied.

(Hmm, Knuckles and Blaze, at least I know their names now. But what does Blaze mean by "we"?) Knuckles motioned towards the chair for me to sit. I complied.

With Blaze on my left and Knuckles on my right, Blaze spoke, "Master Cream, we have brought him as you requested." A single light then shone on the back of a very tall, elevated chair which Blaze was speaking to. The chair then slowly turned.

"Very good, thank you." the rabbit said. (Apparently, this was this, Cream dude?) "That's Master Cream to you from now on. Also, I'm a girl." Cream said. "Whoa! How did you…did you just…I was thinking… and you…" I stammered. "Yes, I just read your mind. And you better get used to it, because there are a few of us around here who can do just that." Cream answered calmly.

"Why did you bring me here?" I asked. "Do you know where 'here' is?" Cream asked. "Is this the IPIA HQ?" "Yes, it is. Let me guess, Marine told you about the IPIA." "Yeah." "And Sonic informed you about our proposal." "Sort of, what is the proposal exactly?" "The proposal is that you join the IPIA. We will see what you are capable of, and you will be joining our prized team of highly skilled agents." "And who might they be?" "If you join you'll find out…"

I was extremely curious now. I also didn't really have much of a life to get back to. "Fine, I'll join." "Good, so let me tell you the rules of this place." "Rules?" "Yes, 3 rules. #1: Clothes MUST be worn." "WHAT THE HELL!" "#2: NO swearing!" "…" "#3: Cooperate with your fellow agents. You are new here and you will do as they say. Understand?" "Yes…"

"Alright, Knuckles, Blaze, take Ryan to his room and introduce him to his new team."

Cream was finished, so off we went.

Blaze, Knuckles, and I walked down the navy blue hallways. I was a little nervous about meeting my teammates, so I tried to look more confident by crossing my peach arms across my white, furred torso.

When we arrived at the room, Knuckles knocked on the door three times. A yellow fox opened the door. "Hiya, Knuckles, what's up?" the fox asked.

"Hey, Tails. Blaze and I brought your new teammate!" Knuckles exclaimed. Tails stepped outside the doorway and held out his hand.

"Hi, I'm Miles Prower. But everyone calls me Tails! I must say, I admire your tails, they're really cool!" Tails introduced himself. I shook his hand and replied, "Thanks." And then it came to me. The fox had two tails! Just like the one that shot that dart into my arm!

"Hey, I remember you! You were the one that shot that dart into my arm earlier today, wasn't it?" I asked. "Yep, that was me. I guess my tails gave it away, huh?" Tails replied. "Yeah, that happens with me too… That was a nice shot by the way."

Tails chuckled. "Thanks, hey, where's Sha-" Tails turned around to the doorway and I looked up too. There, leaning against the door frame was a black and red hedgehog who was staring at me. Tails continued, "There's Shadow! He's the other member of your new team, Ryan!"

"I am Shadow the Hedgehog, the Ultimate Lifeform." Shadow stated while leaning off the door frame and shoving out a hand. "Ooookkkk… It's nice to meet both of you!" I replied and shook his hand. Did he just grimace? What's his problem?

"Well, you kids have fun, alright! Don't forget to take Ryan to get some clothes. Ok, Tails?" Blaze said. "I won't!" Tails answered as Knuckles and Blaze walked away.

"Hey, Ryan. Wanna go now and get it over with?" Tails asked. I sighed, "Sure."

Shadow and Tails started to walk and I followed them. (Tails seems pretty nice and Shadow looks really cool. I hope they like me. But there's something different about Shadow from the others. I wonder what it could be.)

*Normal POV*

While Ryan was lost in thought, Shadow and Tails were talking. "I don't like this guy, he shakes hands like a whimp!" Shadow stated. "Oh, would you be nice for once! So what if he shakes hands like a whimp, we don't even know him yet! Plus, he's probably really nervous being around new people in a new place. Just try to make him feel welcome, because he's our teammate whether YOU like it or not!" "Hmph, whatever."

When the three arrived at the high-tech machine that stored all sorts of clothes, Shadow started to leave.

"You know how to get here now, so I'm leaving. I don't give a damn about what you wear as long as you wear something red and black. Got it, Ryan?" "Not so fast, Shadow! You're staying with us!" Tails shouted. "And why would I do that?" Shadow asked as he walked closer to Tails and stared down at him intimidatingly.

"Because I'll tell Master Cream if you don't!" Tails replied, ignoring the fact that Shadow was standing two inches away from him. He only received a low growl from Shadow who just went to lean against a wall away from Ryan and Tails.

Shadow could obviously leave if he really wanted to, but instead he stuck around to make Tails happy.

"What's your favourite colour, Ryan?" Tails asked. "Umm…lime green I guess." "Alright, then, take these spy glasses I developed. They have tons of cool functions, and the frames are lime green!" "Wow, thanks. They look pretty neat." "You can try them out along with the rest of your new gear at tomorrow's training session!"

"Ok, I will. But on a different note, I don't know what to get for gear, and I hate doing anything related to clothes. So…" Ryan paused and grabbed a huge bundle of random clothes. "I'll just take all these and I'll decide in the morning!" "I guess you could do that…" Tails said.

"Now let's go before any more of my time is wasted." Shadow said. "Um, Shadow?" Ryan asked. "What?" "Do you have some sort of issue with me?" Shadow then faced Tails, "Wow, he catches on fast…"

Tails turned to Ryan and gave him a shrug of his shoulders and a "let's change the subject" look. But not another word was spoken for the rest of the walk back to the room.

*Ryan's POV*

"Ready to see your room, Ryan?" Tails asked. "It's my room." Shadow stated. I stayed silent. "Well, you two are sharing." "So it's myroom." "Argh, whatever!"

Tails opened the door. He walked in, Shadow walked in, and then I walked in. There was a bed on either side of the room, both pushed up against the far corners. There were three windows, one behind each bed, and one in the middle of the back wall. They were all covered by ruby red, velvet drapes. There was a large round wooden table in the middle of the room with three matching chairs around it. There was also a single chair that matched the others facing the middle window all by itself. There was a large chest with drawers and cabinets and lots of stuff on top of it against the wall behind us. The walls were black, the ceiling was white, and the area rug was red. The left bed's sheets were black, and the right bed's sheets were cobalt blue. The same colour as the tuft of fur on my forehead. Finally, a large golden chandelier hung from the ceiling in the middle of the room. The room was so impressive, my jaw dropped to the floor, and so did all the clothes I was carrying!

"Wait, there's more!" Tails exclaimed excitedly closing the front door and heading over to another door on the right wall which I hadn't noticed before. I don't know how I had missed it, the doors were white! I followed Tails to the second door.

When Tails and I walked through the doorway, we were in a small hallway with a door on the opposite end, a doorway with no door-open concept-on the left, a decorative plant in every corner and some art on the right wall.

"My room is through there." Tails said gesturing towards the far door. "But let me show you the kitchen. I'll show ya my room some other time. It's kinda messy anyways." Tails said, smiling to himself.

As we walked into the kitchen, I saw the usual things a kitchen would have. Cupboards, a sink, a fridge, a stove, and a small table, all of which were white and/or stainless steel. Another thing that was white was the door on the opposite end of the kitchen. "That's the bathroom." Tails said, noticing where I was looking at the time.

All in all, the kitchen was a medium size, not too big, and not too small.

"We have brunch here every morning, and then everyone has dinner in the conference room! Oh, have you eaten anything today?" Tails asked. "No." I answered. "Well, you must be hungry! What would you like?" "Do you have any pretzels? They're my favourite." "Yep, right in that cupboard. They're Shadow's favourite too!" Tails replied pointing to a cupboard beside me.

After I got out the bag of pretzels, I stood beside Tails, still admiring the room. "You guys have it pretty ni-" I was interrupted by Shadow shoving between Tails and I and heading to the bathroom. "I'm taking a shower…and don't even think about bothering me, GOT IT?" Shadow shouted. Tails just rolled his eyes as Shadow slammed the bathroom door shut behind him.

I couldn't do anything but stand there with a confused look on my face. "What's his problem?" I asked. "It just takes him a while to get used to new people." Tails replied. "Is he always like that?" "Ever since his best friend Mar-…Err…Let's go talk in your room, Ok?" Tails suggested in a panicky tone. "Ok…" I murmured, slightly confused.

I layed down on my bed and Tails sat at the table. He clearly wanted to talk about something different than before, so we did, "So Ryan, I saw how you did at that competition earlier today; I can't believe you beat Rouge! She's pretty good!" "Oh, I didn't know you saw the fight…" "Oh yeah, Marine, Sonic, Shadow, of course Rouge, and I were all there. We were pretty surprised with how good you were, and that's why we had you join the IPIA! Plus, your gunna get even better! Just wait till training tomorrow!" "Woah, woah, calm down, Tails!" "Sorry, um… can you use your tails to fly?" "No. Why, can you?" "Yeah, look!"

Tails stood up and started to hover using his tails. "Holy crap! That's sooo cool!" "I know…" Tails said, blushing a little. He sat back down, "Do you have any relatives, Ryan?" "No, both my parents died a couple years ago." "Oh, I'm so sorry." "It's fine. I've gotten used to not being around others and being independent. I think I'm better off that way." "Aww, come on, Ryan. Everybody needs friends!"

"Speaking of friends, who's this best friend of Shadow you were talking about before?" "Well, I'll tell you if you promise not to tell Shadow I told you." "I promise."

"Ok, Shadow's best friend was Maria Robotnik. He was always really happy around her and he could tell her anything. But then, she died about a month ago, and he hasn't been the same Shadow since. He doesn't really want to have any friends anymore…" "Wow, that's really sad." Ryan stated sadly while finishing off the last of the pretzels. Tails stood up and yanked the empty bag out of Ryan's hands.

"It's getting pretty late, I'm gunna go to bed now. Shadow's making brunch in the morning. So you better get up early before I eat it all!" "Haha, very funny." "Sweet dreams, Ryan!" "You too."

As Tails was about to leave, Shadow walked in, now finished his shower. "Good night, Shadow!" Tails said. "Bite me." Shadow answered coldly. Tails just sighed and left.

Shadow gave me a suspicious look while I was thinking about what he had just said. (That wasn't very nice.) "Who cares if it wasn't very nice?" Shadow snapped. "Woah! You're one of those guys who can read minds!" I screamed. "Yeah, yeah. Big woop. Just go to sleep." "Fine."

Shadow flicked off the lights as I crawled under the covers and tilted my head to face him. Then he got in his bed. "Good night, jerkface." I said. Shadow just rolled his eyes, lied down facing the wall away from me, and started to go to sleep. I turned my head and looked at the ceiling.

As I slowly closed my eyelids, I couldn't help but think about the surprises tomorrow would have in store.

A/N: That's the second chapter!

Silver: That was a lot longer than the first chapter!

Sonic: But he didn't submit it before school like he said he would!

Me: It's 12 hours late, get off my case.

Cream: What's going to happen next time?

Ryan: You'll have to wait to find out! =P

Hope you liked it!

Please R&R!


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Hey, here's the third chapter of my first story ever!

Sorry for the wait, but life's busy you know!

Sonic: Is that really a good excuse?

Me: Yes! But it's also a nice long chapter, so enjoy! But right after… Amy does the disclaimer!

Amy: OK! He does NOT any of us Sonic the hedgehog characters, they all belong to SEGA. But he does own Ryan the cat!

Me: That was perfect! Good job!

Amy: Thanks!

Sonic: Show off…

Amy: *Takes out hammer* Care to repeat that!

Sonic: NAH! I'm fine!

Me: Anyways, let's get on with the story!

Hope you like it!

Chapter 3

*Ryan's POV*

I awoke to a deep, mumbling voice. As I lifted my eyelids, I was suddenly drenched by sunlight. "Hmph, what?" I asked, rubbing my eyes. I opened them and saw Shadow opening the drapes.

"I said, unless you want to starve, I suggest you get your lazy butt out of bed." Shadow said blankly. I opened my eyes again, now accustomed to the light, to see Shadow walk out of the room. "That's pretty much the nicest thing he's said to me since we met…" I mumbled to myself.

In the kitchen, Tails was eating his brains out, stuffing his face with his plateful of Shadow's pancakes. "Mmm, goo- orni-, -yan!" Tails exclaimed with his mouth overflowing. He swallowed and repeated himself, "Good morning, Ryan! Sleep well?" "Yeah, I did. Maybe I can deal with Shadow's "happy-go-lucky attitude" for a little while today." I answered sarcastically, glancing at Shadow who was washing dishes as I walked past him. He gave me a peeved look, but I just sat down at the table with Tails.

"Have some of Shadow's famous pancakes!" Tails proposed, then shoving more pancakes in his mouth. "Aww, you didn't have to pamper me so much just because you like me, Shadow." I said teasingly. He just rolled his eyes and kept washing.

*Normal POV*

"WOW! These pancakes are amazing!" Ryan finally managed to say after wolfing down his pancakes. Shadow didn't say anything, but he did faintly blush in embarrassment, but out of Ryan's view. Tails had gone to the bathroom to wash up when Ryan finished his breakfast.

Ryan walked over to Shadow with his dirty plate. "Umm… Since you're washing dishes…could you take care of this please?" Ryan asked being as inoffensive and polite as he possibly could. Shadow remembered the conversation that Tails had with him before Ryan had woken up.

*FLASHBACK*

"Shadow, please be nice to Ryan. He didn't do anything to you! I'm sure he's wondering why you don't like him." Tails said. "Argh, fine. I'll be nicer to him. But only if the opportunity arises, I'm not going to go around looking for ways to be nice to him." Shadow responded. "That's all I can ask of you, Shadow."

*END FLASHBACK*

"Sure." Shadow answered. "Thanks…You're not so bad after all." Ryan said, putting his plate on the counter and patting Shadow on the shoulder.

Ryan walked back to their room with a smile on his face, but Shadow washed the dishes with confusion in his thoughts. (What could Ryan mean by that?)

When Ryan got back to the room, he decided to put on his clothes. But…where were they?

He looked under the beds, in the cabinets, and in the drawers, and what did he find there?

Tons of gadgets! From shurikens to formulas to machines to controllers to books to-wait…books?

A book titled: My Diary – By Maria Robotnik was in the drawer. Ryan picked up the book and stood up. He looked up and observed the "stuff" that was on top of the chest. Mostly pictures. Pictures of a blonde-haired girl, usually wearing a blue dress, always smiling, and almost always with…Shadow.

(Is this Maria?) "Yes, it is." Ryan froze, then slowly turned around to see Shadow with arms crossed and a blank expression on his face standing in the doorway. "How do you know about Maria?" Shadow continued. "Umm…" "Did Tails tell you about her?"

If there was one thing Ryan couldn't do, that was lying. "Pphht. Noooo." he answered, trying to sound honest but failing miserably. "He did, didn't he?" Shadow pressed. "Yeah," Ryan admitted, looking down at the floor, "Are you mad?"

Shadow sighed loudly, remembering his earlier conversation with Tails. He took a deep breath, and replied, "No…" "Really?" Ryan was extremely surprised, "I thought you would be." "It's still considered rude to go through other people's stuff without permission."

Shadow snatched the book from Ryan's hands and put it back in the drawer. "Sorry…I was just looking for my clothes." "Oh, you left them on the floor last night, so I put them in that walk-in closet over there." Shadow replied, gesturing towards a door. Another white door Ryan had missed, - amazing. "Oh, thanks…" Ryan replied as he opened the closet door and walked in, leaving Shadow by himself.

Shadow sighed again and mumbled to himself, "I hope he learns…"

*Ryan's POV*

(I can't believe I have to wear clothes! I'm going to look so stupid!) The first thing on top of the pile of my clothes was a pair of white jeans. I tried them on, and they looked kind of good. "I'll stick with these…What's next, a shirt."

I rummaged in the pile of clothes for a minute until I found something that caught my eye. It was a black, collared shirt with buttons on the front. (Now if I just get something red as well, Shadow should be happy…Ooh, a ruby red, ankle-length trench coat! I'll take it!)

I put them both on, rolled up the sleeves, buttoned up the shirt, and kept the coat open. It looked nice.

(Next, shoes. But I like my shoes already, plain black and steel toes, I don't want new one-) "Hey, Ryan!" I practically jumped out of my pants. I turned around and saw Tails.

"You scared the Bejabbers outta me!" "Sorry, I didn't mean to. What 'ya doing anyways?" "Getting my clothes." I looked down and saw what Tails was wearing.

Dark green pants, black boots with white laces, a charcoal jacket with black straps stretching across his torso and long sleeves that met his white gloves, a black belt with lots of little compartments that held all sorts of stuff, and finally a pair of black spy glasses resting on his forehead.

"Looks good so far. Ya still need gloves and shoes, right?" Tails asked. I nodded.

"Try those cobalt blue, steel-toed sneakers with white buckles." "Hmm, they're nice. I guess I could wear them with these black gloves with open finger holes." I added. "Don't forget these spy glasses!" Tails exclaimed, handing me my glasses.

After I put on the gloves and shoes, I took the glasses from Tails and put them on. My transformation was complete. "Wow, that looks nice!" Tails stated. "You really think so?" I asked. "Of course!" he reassured. "Cool, I guess I'll stick with these then. Oh, by the way, why is this closet so big?" "Because it's a-" "IT'S THE NEW GUY!" I spun around to see a pink hedgehog with crazy hair and eyes gaping at the sight of me. "-shared closet…" Tails finished.

"Hi, I'm Sonia!" "I'm Ryan, it's nice to meet you." I stuck out as hand. "Forget about shaking hands. We're one big family now, so come give me a hug!" Sonia said, wrapping her arms around me. I hadn't been hugged in such a long time. I looked at Tails and gave him a "what's going on?" look. He chuckled and spoke, "Yep, that's Sonia. She loves hugs." Sonia ended the hug and looked me up and down.

"Well, aren't you the spiffy one!" she exclaimed. "They're new clothes…" I attempted to explain. "Well, they look good on you!" Sonia stated while walking over to a section of the closet and she quickly pulled out a sky blue dress shirt and a white miniskirt.

"I guess I'll see you two at training! Bye!" Sonia said, walking out the door of which she entered. Another WHITE DOOR I had missed before. (Where'd that door come from?)

"Do you like those clothes, Ryan?" Tails asked. "I guess they're pretty good…" "Well everyone wears the same clothes every time we go to battle, so you will be too!" "Every time we battle?" I murmured. "Come on, Ryan! Let's go get Shadow!" I followed Tails out of the closet.

There was Shadow, in our room waiting for us. With one hand on his hip and the other clenched in a fist by his side. "Let's go." he said harshly. (Jeez, you don't have to be so pushy!) Shadow made a low growling noise. I glanced at him and he was staring at me ferociously. I forgot he could read minds. But he looked like he wanted to bite my head off! It wasn't that big a deal.

I followed Shadow and Tails out the door and we headed to training.

When we arrived at the large, gymnasium-like room, there were a few other agents waiting for us. There was Knuckles, Blaze, Sonia, and three others who I didn't know. When they noticed me, they started to greet me and introduce themselves.

"Hi, I'm Amy!" "What's up? I'm Manic!" "Hello, and I'm Tikal!" (Wow, I hope I can remember all these names!)

"Training will start shortly. Everyone will participate in three battles. The first and third will be single battles, and the second will be fought in teams of two." Blaze explained. Then Sonic, Rouge and Marine entered the room. "Does everyone understand?" Blaze asked. "Not really…But I catch on just as fast as I run!" Sonic boasted. "Too bad your brain isn't so fast…" Rouge mentioned. Everyone laughed, except for Sonic.

"Pick your opponent for the first round!" Blaze said. Sonic and Tails, Knuckles and Shadow, Rouge and Tikal, Manic and Marine, Amy and Sonia, and…That leaves me with Blaze!

Blaze and I walked over to Ring 2 of 6. We both took our positions.

"Welcome to the IPIA, Ryan. I've never battled another cat before, so it should be a good first fight for you!" Blaze said, seeming serious but excited at the same time. "Whenever you're ready, Blaze!" I exclaimed.

*Normal POV*

Blaze was wearing a purple cape with frilled sleeve ends, white gloves, ruby red sneakers with black laces, an orange headband and a pair of spy glasses that appeared out of nowhere.

She pounced at Ryan as quickly as she could, but he jumped straight up to evade it. He looked down at Blaze from the air.

"Let's see what these glasses can do!" Ryan shouted, as he pushed a random button on the glasses.

Two tiny cylinders emerged from the frames and the lenses displayed a scope for Ryan. Then they started to fire lasers at Blaze! She dodged them uneasily as Ryan fired countless others at her. Blaze was having some trouble, so she pushed a button on the side of her right sneaker.

The laces then shot opposite ways to form a line on the ground. As lasers were heading towards her, Blaze snapped her fingers, and a force field shot up from the laces protecting Blaze.

"What? That's not fair!" Ryan whined. He kept firing lasers but they did nothing due to the force field.

Ryan landed on the ground and stopped firing the lasers. He pushed another random button on the glasses and the two cylinders fired a mysterious pale blue ray at the force field.

It hit the force field and…it disappeared! "What? How did you know how to get rid of a force field?" Blaze yelled confusedly. "I didn't…but I'm good at this anyways! Let's finish this!" Ryan replied excitedly. He turned around and closed his eyes just as had done against Rouge the previous day.

"Don't play games with me, Ryan. I'm sorry, but…I will finish this!" Ryan turned around and opened his eyes, "Huh?"

"With the power invested in the spirit, I summon the sacred element of… FIRE!" Blaze exposed the palms of her gloves to reveal the red flame symbols displayed on them. And flames sprouted from her hands, covering her body.

"Woah…" Ryan managed to say. He was distracted, so Blaze shot some fireballs at him. He noticed them just in time to dodge them, but one caught his left foot and Ryan fell to the ground.

Blaze swung her arm and flames appeared on the floor and started moving towards Ryan. "Aaah! I surrender! I surrender!" Ryan screamed. The flames formed a circle around him, and a burning Blaze walked through them.

"Very well…" Blaze said, and the flames weakened, until only smoke was floating around the two cats. "That was an interesting battle." Blaze stated, "Good match, Ryan." "Ha! That's for sure!" "Did you enjoy it?" "Of course I did! That was epic! I didn't know you could do anything like that!" "Well, it's not just me…Come on, let's go get ready for the second battle."

The two cats joined the others, including Knuckles who was sulking. "Why are you sulking, Knuckles?" Ryan asked. "Because Shadow beat me in a battle. I'm a guardian! I'm supposed to be good at battles!" Knuckles replied. "I'm sure you're good at battles! Besides, how many guardians are there anyways?" "There's two around here, me and Blaze." "Oh! That explains why Blaze was so good!" Ryan said, looking at Blaze who was about to make an announcement.

"Alright, everybody! Find a partner!" Blaze said. "RYAN!" Tails yelled, running across the room towards Ryan. When he reached him, he spoke normally, "Wanna team up?" "Sure!" "Hey, Ryan!" Sonia said suddenly, "Want to battle Amy and I?" "Sure! But Tails and I are unstoppable!" Ryan boasted. "Whatever you say!" Amy said.

The four animals walked over to Ring 3. Tails started to talk to Ryan, "Ok, take this belt. It has all sorts of gadgets in the compartments. But use them wisely…" "Got it."

Amy was wearing a white and yellow t-shirt and lime green skinny jeans, with white boots and purple gloves. Sonia was wearing a sky blue dress shirt and white miniskirt that she had taken out of the closet, purple flats and orange gloves and hoop earrings to match.

Amy pulled out her Piko Piko hammer, "Alright, boys! Let's have some fun!"

"Alright! I'll start it off with some lasers!" Ryan said, as he pushed the laser cannons button. The two tiny cylinders emerged, and lasers were fired at Amy. But she deflected them with her hammer one after the other. "Ack! That was as useless as snowshoes in July!" Ryan said.

Meanwhile, Tails started to fly towards Sonia as she reached into the biggest compartment in her navy blue belt and pulled out a golden disc. She threw it on the ground and it suddenly transformed into a 10-foot tall laser cannon! Ryan noticed this, "Holy shiznik!"

Sonia hopped in the seat and started firing lasers at Tails. "Oh, I know!" Tails, does that thing have some sort of weak spot?" Ryan asked. "Yep, right below the cannons, where the wires are exposed!" Ryan reached in a compartment and pulled out three shurikens. He threw the first one.

Just as it was about to hit, Amy jumped in with her hammer and smashed the shuriken to bits in mid-air. "Not on my watch, Ryan!" she said. "Not if I can help it!" Tails shouted, and he threw something on the ground that created a cloud of smoke.

At that cue, Ryan threw the other two shurikens at Sonia's machine and they both hit perfectly. The machine started to malfunction and make weird noises. "It's gonna blow!" Sonia shrieked. Amy raised her hammer and whacked the side of the cannon to send it flying across the room.

Just as it hit the ground, the machine exploded. When the dust settled shortly after, Amy turned to Tails and raised her hammer, "Back to the point!"

Sonia just happened to be standing nearby, twiddling her thumbs, so Ryan shoved her into Tails. This knocked Tails aside, with Sonia in his old place and…WHAM! Amy's hammer flattened Sonia. But she stood back up immediately.

"I'm fine." Sonia stated. "But your hair is a mess!" Tails remarked, smirking. "Ahh! Sorry Amy, I'm out!" Sonia said. "What? You're leaving me?" Amy screamed. "I know how to get my way…" Tails said.

"But I'll never give up!" Amy exclaimed. Ryan snuck behind her as Tails started to chant, "With the power invested in the spirit, I summon the sacr-" "HEY AMY!" Ryan interrupted. Amy spun around and Ryan pinched her right ear.

"AAAHHH!" Amy screamed at the top of her lungs as she dropped her hammer and fell to her knees. "I surrender! Just stop!" "Ok. Tails, we win!" Ryan exclaimed. "How did you just do that?" Tails asked, baffled. "It's called a pressure point. It sure comes in handy!" Ryan replied. "That's for sure!" Tails exclaimed. "Yeah…that's for sure…" Amy moaned.

Back with the group after the battles were finished, everyone was choosing their next and last opponent.

"You're pretty good, Ryan!" "Thanks, Tails!" "I know! You can battle Shadow!" "WHAT?" "Yep, that would be the awesomest battle ever!" "I don't know…" "You afraid of me, scaredy cat?" Shadow suddenly asked. Ryan whisked around and replied, "Nobody calls ME a scaredy cat and gets away with it!" "Then battle me…" "Fine!"

Shadow and Ryan went over to Ring 6. "You know I'm going to win. Don't you, Shadow?" "In your dreams." "Just because I'm hilarious doesn't mean I'm not a good battler, because I'm both!" "This is going to be the easiest battle ever." "Just fight me already!" "You have NO right to give me orders, Ryan. I'll do what I want."

"Fine, then. Whenever you're ready, Shadow!" "As you wish."

A/N: That's the third chapter!

I hope you readers out there think that I'm progressively getting better at writing, because I hope that you all enjoy my stories.

Knuckles: Moving on…

Me: Yeah. Anyways, I'm going to be submitting the 5th chapter around Halloween, so there's going to be a Halloween party in chapter 5, and I would like you guys to send in some reviews, giving suggestions for the IPIA agents' costumes. So for Ryan, Tails, Shadow, Knuckles, Blaze, Sonic, Rouge, Marine, Manic, Sonia, Amy, Tikal and Master Cream, you can suggest any costume for them.

Try to submit any suggestions before October 15, so I can consider your suggestions and include them in the story!

I'd love to hear from you, even if you don't have an account!

Anyways, I hope you liked it!

Please R&R!


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Hey, here's the fourth chapter of my first story ever!

Just to let you know, I've fixed some mistakes in the previous chapters to make a better read.

Rouge: That's good.

Me: I know! Last time, Shadow and Ryan were about to battle. Who will win? Find out this time!

Cream: Since when was this a game show or something?

Me: Since right now! Anyways, Blaze can do the disclaimer…

Blaze: Okay, he does NOT own any Sonic the Hedgehog characters, they all belong to SEGA.

Me: Great!

Sonic: Why is everyone else so good at this? I want another try!

Me: Ok, you can do it again next chapter.

Let's get on with the story!

Hope you like it!

Chapter 4

*Normal POV*

Shadow was wearing a black cape, white and red gloves, pale blue shoes and a black belt with lots of compartments, just like many other IPIA agents' belts.

Ryan was the first to make a move by going to kick Shadow in the face. But Shadow zipped behind Ryan at super speed. "Huh?" Ryan said. He tried again, and got the same result. "Why are you so fast?" Ryan asked. "Heh heh, you clearly don't know me at all!" Shadow replied.

He threw a punch at the speed of sound that collided with Ryan's jaw. Ryan thumped on the ground and whined, "Ugh, bug off!" He put his weight on his hands, lifted his feet in the air and smacked Shadow with his red tail. He might have hit Shadow, but not very hard as Shadow simply backflipped and came back for more.

Ryan stood up and jumped up out of the way of Shadow's attack, he pulled out four shurikens from his belt, and threw them all at Shadow just before landing back on the ground.

Shadow prepared himself, and at the exact moments, whacked the shurikens with his hands, while carefully avoiding their dangerous edges, redirected them into the air, and as they fell back down towards him, he whacked them a second time sending them towards Ryan.

"Are you kidding me?" Ryan said as he barely dodged them. But the last one caught his coat and pinned him to the ground. Luckily, he pressed a random button on his glasses that made the two tiny cylinders appear and shoot out a red ray that disintegrated the shuriken.

"Hmm, he found the disintegrator ray…" Shadow said quietly. "Ha! Ha! Eat this, Shadow!" Ryan shouted evilly.

Too late.

Shadow had already ripped the glasses off of his face and smashed them on the ground.

"Hey! Tails gave me those!" Ryan stated angrily. "Just get him to make you new ones." Shadow replied, gesturing to the sidelines. When Ryan looked over, to his surprise, Tails was standing there watching him, along with everyone else!

"Why is everybody watching us, Shadow?" "Because they're done their battles and they want to watch me kick your butt!" "Wrong answer, Shadow!"

Ryan pounced at Shadow, after he had been slowly walking closer to Shadow during their conversation without him noticing. So Shadow got hit in the gut by three tails.

Ryan stepped over a kneeling Shadow. "Pretty strong, huh?" Ryan said proudly. Shadow just grunted. He was in pain. Yes, the Ultimate Lifeform was actually in pain.

"Want some more, Shadow?" Shadow stood up, seeming recovered. "God, you're annoying, aren't you?" "No. You're just cranky." "Yeah, sure. But enough screwing around!" Shadow raised his hands and Ryan saw something he wished didn't exist.

Two snowflake symbols were on Shadow's palms. "Does this mean that…" Ryan gasped. "With the power invested in the spirit, I summon the sacred element of…ICE!" Shadow chanted.

A chill boomed through the room as Shadow pulled a golden handle out of his belt. Without having to do a thing, Shadow made a long, sharp blade of ice emerge from the handle.

"Uh-oh."

Shadow jumped at Ryan and kicked him in the chest, sending him to the floor. He raised his ice sword above his head, and prepared to strike Ryan. Ryan was helpless, he couldn't do anything.

Shadow sliced across Ryan's left eye and blood gushed out. He covered his face and whined, "Aah! What are you doing, Shadow?"

Shadow's sword disintegrated and he put the handle back in his belt. He then jumped up high. "Shadow, no. I surrender. Please don't do this to me." Ryan pleaded but to no avail. "Chaos Spear!" Shadow shouted as he swung his arm and yellow spears shot towards Ryan.

The impact of the spears sent Ryan flying across the room. "Chaos Control!" Shadow shouted and he disappeared, then reappeared in the direction Ryan was heading.

As he prepared to finish Ryan off, he saw his teary, bloody face heading towards him. And with one final blow, a kick to the face, Ryan's crumpled body smashed to the ground and Shadow exhaled. "Nobody messes with me."

"SHADOW! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?" Tails screamed. The entire group rushed over to Ryan to help him. "He's unconscious!" Sonia shrieked. "We need to patch him up immediately!" Blaze said. "We need to hurry!" Rouge added.

As half the group picked Ryan up and started to carry him away, the other half was harassing Shadow. "You are so heartless, Shadow!" Tails shouted. "Unbelievable how stupid that was!" Marine remarked. "I don't know what to say…" Tikal said sadly. "Come on, let's get away from this monster." Amy said.

The entire room was now empty, except for Shadow. He frowned, crossed his arms, and finally realized there was something he didn't know. What was his problem?

Back at Ryan's room, Ryan had been lied down on his bed as the others were doing various tasks. Knuckles had gone to see Master Cream, Manic and Amy were wrapping Ryan's twisted ankle in bandages, Sonia was repairing Ryan's clothes and equipment, Tails was preparing his tools to give Ryan stitches, and Tikal, Rouge, Marine and Sonic were sanitizing and repairing Ryan's head and cuts.

Rouge wiped the blood from Ryan's deep cut with a tissue. "I'll take that for you." Blaze said. Rouge handed the tissue over and Blaze took it and walked out of the room.

"I'm ready for the stitching." Tails said worriedly. A few seconds went by until Tikal replied, "We are too."

Amy and Manic had just finished working on Ryan's ankle, so they along with the others backed away from the bed to give Tails his space as he stitched up Ryan's cut.

When Tails finished the stitches about twenty minutes later, Sonia asked him, "How many stitches did you give him?" "Thirteen." Tails replied. "Wow…" Amy whispered. "Uh-oh, it's dinner time." Sonic stated. "But who's going to watch Ryan?" Rouge asked. "I will."

Everyone whisked around to see Shadow standing in the doorway. "I will stay with him." he continued. "Good idea. You haven't come to dinner with the rest of us for about a month now. So this works out." Tails said calmly, restraining himself but almost sounding sarcastic. He switched to anger, "If Ryan wakes up, you make him stay put, and come get US immediately!" "Or else, things will never be the same!" Amy added on. And with that, they all stormed out of the room.

Shadow sat down on the lone chair by the window. He couldn't eat, his mind was full with scattered thoughts, he just needed time to think.

Shadow stared out the window. He wasn't looking at anything in particular, he was only focusing on his thoughts.

When Tails came back from dinner, he was still thinking. When Tails went to bed, he was still thinking. When the time reached midnight, he couldn't sleep, so he was still thinking. By 3 am, he started to worry a little. (He still isn't awake after about 12 hours of being unconscious. I hope he's still…alive.)

Shadow stood up and walked over to Ryan. He lifted his wrist and checked for a pulse. There was one, but just to be sure he placed his ear on Ryan's furred chest and listened for breathing. There was breathing, so Shadow stood up straight and went back to the window.

Just before he started another thought, he heard noises from beside him. He didn't look over, he just listened.

Ryan was waking up. He slowly blinking his eyes repeatedly, and turned his head and saw Shadow's face in the moonlight. He remembered the previous events that put him in his current state, but he still had many unanswered questions.

"Shadow?" Shadow turned to Ryan, "I'm glad you're okay." "Where am I? What time is it? What happened?" "We're in our room, it's 3 am, and everyone patched you up and they're asleep now." Ryan remembered Shadow's sword attack. He brought his hand up to his eye and felt his injury.

"I got stitches?" "Yes." Shadow replied comfortingly. "How many?" "Thirteen." "Hmm…" Ryan trailed off, and Shadow looked back out the window.

After a minute, Ryan stood up, leaning on other objects to help keep his balance. "You know I ought to punch you in the face right now for what you did to me?" Ryan said light-heartedly. "Heh, heh. I acknowledge that." "But I'm not going to." "Why not?" "Because…" Ryan paused. "Because I forgive you." "Really?" "Yeah, you just wanted to win…" Shadow turned around, "There is another reason." "What is it?" Ryan asked softly, making eye contact. Shadow looked away. "Why, Shadow?" Shadow gave no answer.

"Why?" Ryan asked again. "Because I'm mad at you!" "Why are you mad at me?" "Because you…" Ryan knew Shadow was having difficulty letting this out. He put a hand on his shoulder, "It's ok, Shadow…" "Because you remind me of Maria."

Ryan froze. He had never thought that Shadow would say anything like that. He was truly shocked.

"Really?" Ryan asked. Shadow nodded slowly but firmly. "What was Maria to you?" Ryan questioned. "She was my…" "Friend?" "Yes."

"So does this mean that I'm your…" "No, it doesn't." "Oh…" Ryan was kind of disappointed. "But a wise fox once told me that everyone needs friends, Shadow." "Why would Tails say that?" Shadow asked. "I told him that I was better off without friends." "Well, that's true."

That's what it was. Ryan knew there was something different about Shadow from the others, he just didn't know what it was. But now he did. Both he and Shadow had lost someone special in their lives, parents or best friend, and after that they both separated themselves for others, feeling that if they got attached to another being, there would be the same result. Which is why they both didn't want friends.

"Ryan?" Shadow snapped him back to reality. "We are so much alike…" Ryan said slowly. "How?" Shadow asked. Ryan told Shadow everything he had just told himself.

When he was finished, he added on, "But one thing is different." "What's that?" "I had nobody, but you do." That's when Shadow realized he already knew everything Ryan was about to say.

"You have all these friends that care about you, Shadow. They grieve for you, they care for you, and they want you to be happy. But you're just pushing them away. I had none of this, and you need to acknowledge that they want the old Shadow back. We want the old Shadow back."

There was silence as they both absorbed the previous words. "That was a good speech, Ryan." "Thank you." Ryan answered, wanting Shadow to say more. "You're right." Ryan's face lit up. "You're really going to be positive again?" "Definitely." "Thank you, Shadow!"

Shadow could see that Ryan was ecstatic, he needed one more thing. Shadow stood up and gave him a hug. That was the biggest surprise Ryan had gotten in his entire life.

When Shadow stepped away, Ryan asked him, "What was that for?" "At training, Tails told me about your encounter with Sonia when you two met. He could tell that you felt happy inside when she hugged you. I wanted you to feel the same, so that's why I did it." Shadow said with a smile. His first smile in a long time.

"Yeah, I haven't been hugged since my parents died…" "I understand how you feel, Ryan. But I do want to say one more thing." Shadow paused. "Thank you."

"No problem, Shadow. I'm glad to do it! Besides, that's what friends are for, right?" Shadow hesitated, but replied, "Right!" They smiled at each other, both feeling a weight had been lifted from their shoulders. They felt true happiness.

"I think we should get our last 5 hours of sleep now, don't you?" Shadow asked. "Yeah, good idea." Ryan replied. They both walked over to their beds slowly, got in, and faced each other.

"Good night, Shadow!" "Bite me." "WHAT?" "I'm joking. Good night, Ryan!" "Good one!" Ryan said while laughing.

He closed his eyes and fell asleep knowing that right now, he couldn't be happier.

A/N: That's the fourth chapter!

Wasn't that a wonderful ending? I hope you think so.

Sonic: I think he's gone soft…

Everyone: Yeah.

Me: Hey! There was intense battling, that's not soft!

Anyways, the contest for the characters' costumes is still going until October 17th, so send in any suggestions if you want, and extra details are at the end of chapter 3.

So, that's it from me…

Everyone: BYE!

Me: Yep, see ya!

Hope you liked it!

Please R&R!


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Hey, here's the fifth chapter!

All: HOORAY!

This chapter is special for Halloween! Because it was Halloween not too long ago!

Marine: Mmmmm, candy…

Me: Now believe me, this chapter does seem a bit random and pointless, but remember, everything that happens in this story has a purpose. And you will eventually see what follows…

Amy: Moving on…

Sonic: Okie dokie! He does NOT own me, Tails, Shadow, Amy, Blaze,-

Rouge: Skip ahead!

Sonic: Ok, we all belong to SEGA!

Me: That's a job well done!

Sonic: Yay!

Knuckles: I think he was being sarcastic…

Sonic: Shut up!

Knuckles: Make me!

Sonic: Shut up!

Me: Ok, while these two keep bickering like 4 year olds, let's get on with the story!

Hope you like it!

Chapter 5

*Normal POV*

8:30 am the next morning, Ryan woke up to the small glint of sunlight shining through the window. He looked over to Shadow and observed him.

He noticed that Shadow looked different when he slept. He didn't have his usual frown, instead a soft face. But as he was staring at Shadow's eyebrows, he hadn't noticed that his eyes were now open.

"What are you looking at?" Shadow asked him. Ryan quickly looked away. "Nothing!" "I'm not being rude or anything, I'm just wondering." "Why don't you just read my mind?" Ryan retorted. "I'd rather not…" Shadow dragged his feet out of bed and onto the bed. He slipped on his shoes and Ryan slowly did the same.

"Need help?" Shadow asked blankly. "I guess so." Ryan replied hastily. Shadow walked over and helped him up.

They slowly walked to the kitchen for brunch. They rounded the corner, and Tails noticed Ryan.

"Ryan, you're OK! I'm so glad!" Tails exclaimed, walking over to him. Then he noticed Shadow. "Oh, what are you doing, Shadow?" he asked. "I'm helping Ryan." Shadow stated. "Oh really…" "Don't worry Tails," Ryan piped up. "Shadow and I are good now. I forgave him." "Oh really…" Ryan nudged Shadow, "Shadow has something to tell you, Tails." "Oh really…"

"Tails, I'm sorry I've been ignoring you. Now I realize that I am very lucky to know that you care about me. So, thank you for not giving up on me." Shadow told him. "Oh really…" "Slip out of the trance, Tails!" Ryan exclaimed. "Oops, um…Wow, Shadow…" "We talked and he's going to go back to the old Shadow now." Ryan said. Shadow nodded in agreement. "Wow, Shadow. Thank you." Tails said to him.

"Well, um…Since we're all good now, let's have brunch. I made us some fruit with whipped cream!" Tails said. "Let's dig in!" Ryan exclaimed.

After they had eaten their meal, they continued their conversation. "That was great, Tails!" Ryan praised. "Thanks…" he replied shyly. "So, what's happening around here in the next couple days?" Ryan asked. "Are you forgetting what tomorrow is?" Shadow said, pointing out that there was an obvious answer. Ryan just looked at him and Tails strangely.

"Ryan, tomorrow is Halloween!" Tails said. "Oh, wow. I have no clue what I should be." Ryan stated. "Well you have some time to decide. The party is tomorrow night." Tails replied.

"What are you two going to be?" Ryan asked curiously. "It's a surprise!" Tails answered. "Except for Sonic's costume. We already know that one!" Shadow exclaimed. Both he and Tails broke out laughing hysterically.

Ryan felt awkward. "Anyways…I know what I'll be. But I would need to borrow your cape, Shadow. Is that ok?"

Ryan and Tails looked at Shadow hopefully. "Um…sure!" he exclaimed, plastering a fake smile across his face. Now Ryan and Tails were happy. That's good. He didn't want to give Ryan his cape at all, but he had to do what he had to do.

The next evening after dinner, everyone had gone and prepared their costumes for the party. One by one, they had made their way to the party.

*Ryan's POV*

When I arrived at the party, three others were already there. Marine who was a pirate, Blaze who was a witch, and Tails who was a vampire. I walked to them.

"It's Darth Vader!" Marine shouted. "But who is it actually?" Tails asked. They all thought for a moment.

"Is it Manic?" Marine asked. I shook my head. "Is it Knucklehead?" Blaze asked. I shook my head again. I took off my helmet and they realized it was me.

Marine removed her eye patch. "Crikey! Now I recognize ya!"

"Nice costume, Ryan! It's cool how you used Shadow's cape!" Tails commented. "Thanks. You all have nice costumes too!" I replied back.

Then a zombie walked in the room making this weird noise. Marine shrieked. "Relax, Marine. It's just Tikal." Blaze stated. Tikal smiled. "Hehe, that was fun!" she said.

I put my helmet back on just in time to meet a school girl. "Nice outfit, Amy!" Blaze shouted. "Thanks!" she replied. "I hope Sonic likes it!"

"Where is he anyways?" Tikal wondered out loud. "I don't know, but look!" Tails said, as he pointed at two newcomers. Batman and Catwoman.

It was Knuckles as Batman, and Rouge as Catwoman. And they looked good! "Aww…You two are so cute together!" Amy exclaimed.

Tails leaned in close to me and whispered, "Knuckles and Rouge are dating, just so you know." "Ohh…" That makes sense now.

Then Sonia and Shadow walked in as an angel and the devil. "Are they dating too?" I asked Tails quietly. "No, they just teamed up pretty recently I guess. I don't know how she got him to agree though." he replied. "But I think Sonia has a crush on you." "Yeah right, Tails. It doesn't mat-" I was interrupted by Manic storming in the room.

"Let's get this party started!" he shouted. He was a DJ, so he went over to his turntables and started the music. Everyone started dancing, including me, and the party had started.

About fifteen minutes later, I was talking with Tails, Tikal, and Marine. When suddenly, Shadow and Amy, who were standing by the entrance, collapsed on the floor laughing like maniacs. Everyone else obviously looked at them instantly, and then we noticed what was so funny.

Standing in the entrance was Sonic, in a ballerina costume! Everyone else broke out laughing as well. Sonic just stood there, his muzzle as red as a tomato in embarrassment.

Amy hobbled over to him. "It's ok, Sonic. I think you look cute! But you still look ridiculous." Everyone laughed some more.

When everyone calmed down, I walked over to Shadow. "Hey, Shadow." "Hmm?" He turned around. "Why is Sonic dressed as a ballerina?" "Oh, 'cause he lost a bet to me last week." "That makes sense…"

"Well, are you enjoying the party?" he asked. "I am! How about you?" I answered. "Meh. It's fine." "When did you and Sonia team up?" "After the first battle at training, we 'talked' about it." "Ok, cool."

Awkward silence. I guess a gay baby was just born. Anyways…

"Well, I'll see you later, Shadow!" He just nodded back. I thought he said he would be happier.

I walked over to the group of Manic, Blaze, Sonia, Rouge and Knuckles. They were talking about Knuckles' balloon animal making talent.

Knuckles was talking already, "My fist animal was totally better than Sonic's chilli dog animal!" That made no sense. He really was a Knucklehead!

"Hey guys!" I greeted. "Hey, Ryan!" they all greeted back. Except for Rouge. "How did you all get inspired for your costumes?" I asked, hopefully changing the subject.

"Well, I was a DJ 'cause, who else would it be, dawg?" Manic said. "Shadow and I are opposites. So, we chose an angel, me of course, and him a devil!" Sonia explained.

We continued to the witch, who was next in the circle. "I was a witch because I wanted to be ugly for a change!" Blaze said. "Yeah, 'cause you've never been ugly before!" Sonia exclaimed. Blaze smiled to her as thanks.

It was my turn. "Well, I didn't have much time to choose, and since I saw this black helmet in the closet a couple days ago, I just decided to be Darth Vader!"

Next was Knuckles. "I was Batman so I could pair up with Rouge." Now everyone looked at Rouge. She glanced at me, then elbowed Knuckles. "Oh! Umm…Rouge was Catwoman so she could pair up with me!" he said awkwardly.

Everyone else looked at the two of them weirdly. Another awkward silence. Another gay baby is born. I turned to walk away just as Manic started a new conversation.

I decided to go talk with Amy and Sonic, but I was stopped. "Ryan?" someone behind me said. I turned around and I saw Blaze.

"Hey, Blaze!" I exclaimed. "I have something important to tell you." she said. "Ok, what is it?" "Not here, though. Come to the room that I share with Knux at 10 am sharp tomorrow morning." "Ok, I'll see you then." Blaze walked back to her group.

I turned around to see that Sonic and Amy were gone now. I looked around and saw them with Shadow. Amy and Shadow were laughing, but Sonic wasn't; I think I know what they're talking about.

Instead, I went over to Tails, Tikal, and Marine. "Hey!" I greeted. "What are you three talking about?"

"About you actually." Tails replied. "Really?" I said. "Yeah, and Rouge too." Marine pointed out. I took my helmet off and raised an eyebrow.

"Well, have you noticed anything about her?" Tikal asked. "No." "She's actually pretty mad at ya, mate." Marine said. "Why?"

"I think she's embarrassed 'cause everyone knows you beat her in that battle." Tails stated. "Yeah, 'cause you kicked her butt!" Marine exclaimed.

"But I don't want her to not like me." I said. "Rivalries are bad for us. Once, Sonia and I didn't talk for a month. It hurt everyone else a lot. But luckily we made up and all was well." Tikal lectured.

"You should definitely make up with Rouge." Marine said. "Well, I'm off to talk with Manic! See ya mates!" she said and she skipped away.

Tails leaned in close to me again and whispered, "I think Marine has a crush on you too." "What? No she doesn't!" "Yes she does. She kept talking about you earlier. And, I think she just asked Manic to play a slow song." "How would you know?" "I can read lips. And my eyes don't lie."

Surely enough, the slow music started then. I didn't recognize the song, I didn't really care for those kinds of songs. Tails and I walked over to Shadow who was now alone.

"I think the party is over for us." I said to him. He nodded in agreement. "Just wait a couple minutes." Tails proposed.

So we watched Sonic and Amy, and Rouge and Knuckles dance. I also looked at the others too. When I looked at Sonia, she was looking at me. When I looked at Marine, she was looking at me too. Wow, Tails was right.

"Let's go." Shadow said. "I agree." I said. So the three of us left. The party was almost over anyways. So we didn't miss much.

Shortly after, we arrived at our room, got out of our costumes, said our good nights, and crawled into our beds.

I smiled at Shadow from my bed, and he smiled back. But something wasn't right about that smile. It didn't seem real. But before I could think any more of it, my eyes had closed and I had drifted off to sleep.

A/N: That's the fifth chapter!

There was a bit of "romance" in that chapter. But this is supposed to seem a little bit real. But not much.

Amy: What does Blaze want to say to Ryan? Will Rouge stay mad at Ryan? Is Shadow hiding something? Find out next time on Journey For Friendship!

Me: Thanks Amy!

Anyways, thanks for reading. And thanks to SSXfanatic, Chaos Controller 15, and VideoGamesRock for the Halloween suggestions!

See all you wonderful readers next time!

10 000 words! XD

Hope you liked it!

Please R&R!


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Hey, here's the sixth chapter!

I've been working really hard on it and I hope the plot thickens a bit.

Also, good news! I'm now on DeviantART with the same username!

Shadow: Um…yay?

Me: Anyways, let's get on with the story!

Silver: Wait! We haven't done the disclaimer yet!

Me: Fine, Marine will do it.

Marine: Alrighty, mate. He don't own none of us Sonic characters, we all belong to Sega!

Me: Great job, and onwards!

Hope you like it!

xXxXxXx

*Ryan's POV*

I slowly blinked my eyes as I woke up. I leaned up and glanced at the clock. It read 8:30. (That should give me plenty of time to eat brunch before I leave.)

I noticed that Shadow was still asleep. Instead of staring at him and having an awkward moment like yesterday, I slowly snuck out of the room, trying not to lean on my injured ankle.

When I got to the kitchen, to my surprise, Tails wasn't there. I walked in and looked around.

"Well I guess I'll make brunch myself." I said inwardly. "I'll help you!" a sudden voice behind me said.

I really need to get Tails a bell or something.

I spun around. "Quit doing that!" "Sorry…" he replied almost sarcastically. "We should make grilled cheese sandwiches!" I proposed. He nodded in return and we got to work.

Once we made brunch, we ate quickly and finished up. "I don't know about you, but I'll be busy for most of the day. You can go check out what Shadow's doing, but most days around here aren't exactly busy 24/7." Tails lectured.

"Well, I do have plans of my own. So I'll see you later." I replied. "Alright, I'm in my room if you need me." he replied as he left the kitchen.

(Hmm, he didn't ask anything about my plans. Is he just minding his own business, or does he not even care? Or is something else entirely going on? Eh, who cares? I have my own issues. Like fixing this stupid habit I have of asking myself questions I can't answer!) I thought as I bonked myself on the head and went back to my room.

There was Shadow, still asleep at 9:45. Should I wake him up? Probably not a good idea. I opened the front door and started to slip out when,

"Where do you think you're going?" Shadow asked, somehow seeming wide awake already.

"Out." I replied, trying to keep my destination a secret for some reason even I didn't know. "Fine." he replied. (WHAT? He doesn't care? It's like he doesn't care about anything!)

"I do care about things, just not you at the moment." he stated.

Damn it! He could read my mind! I'm such an idiot. But he seems to be back to his old, bitter self again… Just great.

"Whatever. Just don't piss off Tails while I'm gone." I said as I left. But I stopped myself.

"And by the way, you get to do the dishes, sleepyhead." I added, smirking like I hadn't in a long time. Just as I closed the door, the last thing I saw was his face, and he was pissed. But a funny kind of pissed.

When I turned to go find Blaze, I remembered something. I have NO CLUE where her room is. That could be a problem.

There were quite a few doors in the hallway, and no name tags or anything like that to help the new kid on the block. After pondering for a bit, I decided on a door. I knocked on said door three times. It opened, and…

"CRIKEY! What are you doin' here?" a particular raccoon screamed. This was certainly the wrong door, considering Marine was standing in front of me. It's Marine, yay, let's celebrate.

"Oops, wrong door. Heheh, silly me. Well, I gotta go!" I rambled nervously. As I ran away, I realized I…wasn't moving? Sure enough, Marine had already grabbed my wrist to keep in her "wrath".

"Where ya headed, mate?" she asked. "Um…" I started. Damn. I really need to learn how to lie. Why not just say the bathroom. Yeah, good idea. "Blaze's room!" Wow. Good job me.

"Oy, I'll come to!" she exclaimed. Now Marine's going to follow me. Yay, let's celebrate some more.

She stepped out and closed the door behind her. "So where's Blaze's room?" I asked impatiently. "Well, aren't you antsy!" she exclaimed. "It's right down here, mate."

We got to Blaze's supposed room, and I knocked five times. I guess I am antsy. Blaze opened it and greeted with, "You're late, Ryan. It's 10:03."

(Wow, what a warm welcome!) Blaze frowned a bit. Oh crap! Could she read minds too? I sure hope not…

"I'm fashionably late!" I stated, trying to "lighten" the mood. "Never mind that, why is Marine here?" Blaze asked. "Because!" Marine answered, when Blaze was asking ME! How irritating. Well, so much for "lightening" the mood. Whatever. I shrugged my shoulders and went to walk inside, but instead Rouge walked out. She made no eye contact whatsoever. (Why was Rouge here? *Light bulb turns on* Oh! Blaze shares a room with Knuckles, and he and Rouge are "dating" as Tails puts it. I guess it's pretty self-explanatory now.)

Now, we finally entered Blaze's room to discuss this thing. "So, Ryan…" Blaze started with a smile on her face. "Do you know why I asked you to come here?"

"No." Marine replied. WAIT! Why did SHE reply? Argh, she is SO getting on my nerves!

"What Marine said." I said calmly.

"Well, I have some news." Blaze said, as she walked over to a desk and picked up a couple papers. "When Shadow knocked you out a few days ago, and Rouge was cleaning your cut, I took a blood sample of yours from her to the lab. We did some experiments and it turns out that…" Blaze put down the papers, and stared at me with a huge grin.

"YOU'RE MY COUSIN!" she shrieked. "WHAT?" Marine and I asked simultaneously.

"Yes, our DNA is almost perfectly identical, and after some research, Master Cream, Knuckles and I found out!" Blaze explained. "That is so cool!" I said happily. "And that's not all…" Blaze said.

"In addition to that, you know how some of us here can summon the sacred elements?" "Yeah." I answered. "Well it's a special trait in each of our DNA that allows us to do that, and yours actually has the same trait!"

"So does this mean that I can do that too?" I asked. "Yes!" "WAHOO!" I jumped up and down. (What a great day!) "Calm down, calm down. I will have to do some more experiments to figure out which element you can control." Blaze said. "Which ones are there?" I asked.

"I control Fire, Marine controls Water, Shadow controls Ice, Tails controls Nature, Sonic controls Electricity, Rouge controls Air, and Knuckles controls Earth." Blaze replied. "Wow…" I mumbled back, stuck daydreaming of how powerful I could be…until Marine punched me in the arm.

"Oy, mate! Wake up! We gotta go tell everyone the good news!" she exclaimed as she dragged me along and out the door.

"Bye you two!" Blaze shouted out to us. "Bye!" we replied as my head hit the doorknob.

"Hey! I'm still injured, ya know!" I yelled, pissed off with Marine's antics today. That got her attention for once. "I'm so sorry, mate!" she apologized. "And my name's Ryan, not 'mate'!" I snarled as I stood up, rubbing the back of my head. "I'm so sorry, mate! Er, I mean Ryan! I'm so sorry, Ryan!" "Apology sorta accepted." I gritted through my teeth.

After I sent Marine back home, -and after a good-bye-hug that was at least three mississippis too long in my opinion- I opened the door to my room and went inside. As soon as I got in, Tails ran up to me.

"Congratulations, Ryan!" he exclaimed. "Wait, how do you know already?" "Marine told me!" "How?" "Through a message on our spy glasses. It's pretty handy actually." "Oh yeah, I need another pair 'cause of Shadow." "Ok, I'll get them later."

"Thanks anyways though." I said as I walked past him. "What have you been doing so far today?"

"You remember how I never showed you my room 'cause it was too messy? Well now it's clean, and I can show it to ya!" Tails said. "Ok, let's see it!" I replied, and Tails led me there.

He slowly opened the door and…if I had to describe this room in word it would be "nerdy", but that doesn't seem appropriate, so I'll go with "technological".

"Pretty cool, huh?" Tails asked me. "Sure is." "I'll give ya the tour!" Tails led me to the main area.

"This is the TV!" he said enthusiastically. "Thanks, tips…" It was a huge TV on the opposite wall from the entrance with a white sofa and chair in front of it. Next, he took me to the left end.

He showed me his yellow bed and chest of drawers that he kept some of his gadgets in. And on the right side, oh boy…

25 screens displayed various footages of places around. "This here is the IPIA security system. If someone tries to get on our land, these cameras catch them and automatically sound the alarm." Tails explained. I nodded in understanding as I observed the last pieces of the room. The rest of Tails' gadgets displayed on the shelves on the walls, which were painted a cream colour. The floor was yellow, and the ceiling gray.

"So, let's talk…" Tails said as he sat in his "office" chair. I sat on the sofa and started off.

"Thanks for those stitches a couple days ago." "No problem, I'm glad you're getting better. You're practically ready for battling!" Tails said with a chuckle.

"Maybe, but Rouge and Shadow seem a bit sketchy with me right now." I stated. "Well Rouge is just jealous, but Shadow was being nice, right?" "Sort of. I guess he's not 100%." "Yeah, but I'm sure he's doing his best."

"I still wanna cheer him up though. Is there anything that makes him happy?" I asked. "The one thing he can't stand is being tickled." Tails replied. "So the 'Ultimate Lifeform's' biggest flaw is being ticklish?" "Yep." I couldn't stop myself form bursting into laughter at that.

I collapsed on the floor, tears starting to fill my eyes. Shadow being ticklish, was the most ridiculous, funniest thing I had ever heard.

"What's so funny?"

And then the laughter stopped. That somewhat cold yet "comforting" voice wasn't the best one for me to hear right now.

I looked up at Shadow, who was staring at me of course, waiting for me to spill the beans. He knew I couldn't lie.

"We were talking about Sonic's ballerina costume yesterday, and Ryan just broke out laughing." Tails said, thinking quickly. He also knew I couldn't lie, but he had my back.

"Oh really…" Shadow said, still glaring at me. I nodded my head frantically, agreeing with Tails.

"Very well. What shall we talk about?" Shadow asked casually. Is he having mood swings or something? If he was a girl, I'd swear he was pregnant!

"Why did you hug me?" I blurted out. I glanced at Tails and he looked like he had just choked on his own spit. He stared wide-eyed at Shadow. "You did what?" he asked. "Nothing important. I think you hit your head again. Go back to sleep." Shadow said coldly.

'Nothing important.' Why am I hurt by that? Whatever, I better change the subject.

"So what are we doing today?" I asked. Shadow and Tails shrugged. "How about something together?" I asked further. Shadow frowned a bit, but Tails replied, "Sure."

But then an alarm went off. It wasn't that loud, but loud enough to make you want to squish your brains out to end the suffering. But still not that loud.

"What is that?" I shouted over the blaring alarm. Tails looked at the screens. "Uh-oh." he said. "What?" Shadow yelled. "It looks like we'll have to do those plans some other time." Tails replied. "Why?" I asked. "Remember those surveillance cameras I told you about before?"

"Yeah!"

"Well it looks like we've got visitors…"

xXxXxXx

A/N: Well, well. A cliffie!

A bit of humour, suspense, and other stuff mixed into that chapter I guess!

Alright, I hope you enjoyed that chapter!

Silver: We'd also like to thank a few readers!

Unwatered for being my proofreading client, dedicated reader and good friend.

SSXfanatic for being my first person to talk to on Fanfiction, a dedicated reader and great reviewer and friend.

And Chaos Controller15 for being a great short story writer, a dedicated reader and awesome Sonic fan as well.

Thanks to all of you for reading, and check out their stories, they're all really great!

I hope you're liking the story so far, but I don't know unless you leave a review…

Until next time, everyone!

Hope you liked it!

And please R&R!


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Hello, awesome readers! This is the seventh chapter of Journey For Friendship!

Cream: This is so exciting!

Me: I know! Thanks to everyone for reading so far, and here's an action-packed chapter coming up, right after Knuckles does the disclaimer!

Knuckles: Ugh, fine! He doesn't own ANY Sonic characters, even though he wishes he does. Which will never happen because SEGA owns us!

Me: Wow! You are being SO rude!

Sonic: Well he did cover what he was supposed to…

Amy: Shut up, Sonic! You're not helping!

Shadow: I think Knuckles needs an attitude adjustment. Rouge…

Rouge: Come here, Knuckie!

Knuckles: AAAAHHHH! *Runs away*

Me: There we go. Now that that "situation" is solved, we can get on with the chapter!

Enjoy!

xXxXxXx

*Ryan's POV*

"We have what?" I asked over blaring alarms.

"It's our main enemy. They're a clan set out to destroy us, and we just have to keep fighting 'em off." Tails replied.

"Do they have a name or something?" I asked. "No, and I'll explain the rest later. Let's go!" Shadow said.

I followed him and Tails out the door. Before long we were in our gear and in the halls. And yes, Tails gave me new spy glasses, thanks for asking.

Master Cream was choosing who would go out to battle. "Let's see… Rouge, Marine, Tikal, Tails, Shadow, and Ryan! You all go outside and defend immediately!" she ordered. (WAIT! Why me? I don't even think I'm ready to battle yet!)

"Sure you are!" Blaze said. Hmm, I was right. She CAN read minds. "Well then let's go!" I said.

We were now outside, with the enemies barely visible as they approached from over the top of a hill. I slipped on my glasses and I noticed I had a new message from Tails. I opened it and it read:

Hi, Ryan. Since this is your first time out here, I'll give ya some info. The enemies that are here are Dr. Eggman, Wave, Metal Sonic, Espio, and Scourge. Their clan seems to have sent a strong bunch this time. Watch out for Eggman's robots, which includes Metal Sonic. They're pretty dangerous.

Wave is really good with technology, so be careful with that.

Espio and Scourge work together a lot. They're both almost as fast as Sonic and Shadow, and they're both versions of ninjas. They can also control some of the elements, so be cautious.

That's pretty much it, other than try not to get separated from everyone else.

But it's weird how their leader isn't here though. If he shows up, I'll let you know, so don't worry about it.

Good luck, Ryan. Let's battle!

The message ended. I looked through my glasses to find our enemies barely a hundred metres away running towards us. 'Good luck, Ryan. Let's battle!' Remembering that last part of Tails' message, I told myself quietly,

"Yes, let's…"

*Normal POV*

Scourge was the first to make a move. He jumped at Shadow, who evaded easily. Espio, surely enough helped out and pulled out three shurikens from his "bracelet" and launched them at Shadow. Luckily, Tikal had pulled out a laser cannon just like Sonia had and shot them down before Shadow would get hit.

Rouge shouted out to Ryan, "Hey there, hun. You might think you're better than me just because you beat me, but you haven't seen the real deal yet."

She raised her hands, showing off the cloud symbols on her palms, and started to chant, "With the power invested in the spirit, I summon the sacred element of…AIR!"

Ryan wasn't impressed. What did Rouge think THIS would accomplish? Did she want him to worship her or something?

"Rouge! What are you doing?" Tails shouted out just after Marine dodged a laser-shot from Wave.

"I'm proving that I'm better than this newbie!" she replied. "Are you insane? You know that summoning an element this early in a battle will drain your energy too soon!" Tails yelled back.

"Ryan, watch out!" Tikal shrieked. Ryan looked up to see Shadow high up in the air shouting out "Chaos Spear!" and sending it right at…HIS FACE?

Ryan ducked just in time, then he heard an explosion behind him. He looked back to find Metal Sonic sprawled out on the ground. "Well that was close…" Ryan mumbled to himself.

He stood back up to meet some of Eggie's robots with cannons pointed straight at him. "Ryan! Use the metal bar in your belt!" Tails shouted out before flying off to help Marine.

Ryan reached into his belt, pulled out the bar, and pushed the button. The bar extended to about 3 feet long. Just then the robots shot some lasers at him. He whirled the bar around and deflected them with slight difficulty. One laser shot straight back at one of the robots and it exploded.

The remaining two were shoved together by a strong gust of wind, followed by an ivory bat screaming "DRILL KICK!" and falling from the air, with a sharp boot going straight through both.

Rouge backed out, and launched the destroyed bots away with another gust. They exploded in the air and made a large cloud of dust.

But in Ryan's opinion, there needed to be more. He pulled out a smoke bomb and threw it on the ground. "Now try dispersing it…" he suggested to Rouge. "Alright." she replied and did so, creating a giant fog cloud that engulfed the entire battlefield.

"Good job, Rouge!" Ryan praised. "Thanks, hun. But, why aren't you jealous?"

"Because we're teammates! And teammates work together! Right?" "Right." Rouge answered, grinning. "Let's go, buttercup!" she teased.

Ryan rolled his eyes at his old nickname, but was met with two glowing red eyes behind Rouge.

"Um…Rouge…" "Yeah?" "Look out!" Rouge turned around swiftly. She looked good doing it, but her reward was a kick to the face from a metal foot, that belonged to none other than Metal Sonic.

MEANWHILE…

"With the power invested in the spirit, I summon the sacred element of…WATER!" Marine shouted as she raised her palms covered by wave symbols. If she ever needed help, this was the time. She had punched Scourge in the back, but this had only gotten him angry, and now both he and Espio were set on her.

Marine swung her arm towards Scourge and sent a wave of water crashing into him. Espio instantly jumped aside and turned invisible. Marine hated how chameleons could do that!

She let out her anger on Scourge by turning the wave into a whirlpool. He started to get sucked in, but Marine got distracted by a certain invisible prick that just kicked her in the back of the head. She kept the whirlpool going and turned around, and received a kick to the gut.

Hard.

She got knocked back into her own whirlpool. The last thing she heard before going under was Tails screaming out her name.

With her energy drained, and air escaping her, Marine could barely remain conscious. Luckily, this also meant she couldn't keep the vortex going and it ceased soon after. Unluckily, this meant Scourge could escape. Which he did.

Scourge jumped up high and latched onto Tails. The fox couldn't hover while carrying the both of them, so they both fell to the ground.

Scourge climbed on top of Tails and started to choke him against the soil. The space around Tails started to get darker. Was he starting to slip away, or was there sudden onset fog or something? He hoped in was the latter of those options. But he couldn't tell, everything just seemed so sombre. Marine was laying helplessly on the ground, a sudden scream was heard in the background, everything was fading…

Espio had returned to normal and had pulled out a shuriken from his bracelet. He took aim, and threw it straight at the side of Tails' head, still in Scourge's tight grasp. It drew closer and closer…

MEANWHILE…

Shadow was fighting against Wave. Not only was she great with technology, she was also pretty well-trained in martial arts. With Shadow saving his Element Energy for later, this made a fair battle.

They exchanged kicks, punches, leaps, and swipes. Until Wave pulled out two handles of something. She sparked them with electricity and they roared to life to become sword-like lasers. *Like lightsabers* She swung them back and forth, attempting to hit Shadow. He dodged narrowly each time.

At his first opportunity, Shadow jumped back, and charged forward at super speed. This caused Wave to flinch, and Shadow managed to snatch one of the laser swords.

Now each with one sword, they clashed them together. *Just watch Star Wars* Shadow wondered if this could be anything like fencing. He had tried fencing a while ago but he quit becau-

Shadow's fencing daydreams were interrupted when Wave gained the upper hand because of it. Wave was on the attack and forcing Shadow back, which he really didn't like.

And you don't want to get on his bad side.

"Chaos Blast!" he shouted.

And that's why.

This got her to move back. More like exploded her back.

Now that he had some time and space, he threw the laser sword extremely high in the air, raised his hands and started to chant, "With the power invested in the spirit, I summon the sacred element of…ICE!"

As he finished, he caught the electric sword and transformed it into a razor-sharp ice blade instead. Right then fog set in, giving Shadow a darker environment. (Cool, visual effects. I like it.) he thought. He threw this at Wave and she barely dodged it. Her sword wasn't so lucky, it got sliced in half.

Shadow and Wave now had a "glaredown" as a sudden scream was heard. Shadow couldn't take it anymore, he had to do some sort of attack.

As he prepared for a Chaos Spear, he felt himself get lifted off the ground. Taken aback, he looked around for who was lifting him. Nobody was there. That could only mean one thing, and Shadow knew what it was.

MEANWHILE…

Tikal was having her own laser battle with Dr. Eggman over a long distance, so very few shots actually hit.

Tikal had put up a temporary shield that had just worn off, and Eggman's forces had been weakened. Now fog set in, and neither one of them could see where they were shooting.

Suddenly, an ice blade sliced through her laser cannon. Tikal screamed loudly in surprise as the blade barely missed her body and her cannon started to shoot random lasers all over the place.

She looked over at the blade. She noticed it was made of ice, so it must have been Shadow who threw it. She looked straight ahead once again, and what she saw was unbelievable.

Standing in front of her, was the leader of the IPIA's enemy clan,

Silver the Hedgehog.

She tried to aim her malfunctioning at him. He jumped out of the way with ease and the last laser remaining shot out straight towards Tails! This could not end well. Tikal was forced to focus on Silver again as he lifted both herself and Shadow in the air using his psychokinesis.

Tikal and Shadow started to lose their breath when Silver's invisible hold started to choke them. Everything was going wrong. This is the end. This must be it. Tikal wasn't usually one to think negatively, but she couldn't help herself. There was no hope, was there?

Luckily for Tails, the shuriken Espio had thrown at him got destroyed by some random laser he had no clue about. Now he had an extra two seconds to live – woopdiedoo – until Scourge would mercilessly choke him to death.

With his head pressed up against the ground, Tails listened to the last sound he would probably ever hear. He heard rumbling, slowly getting louder and louder, until…

The entire battlefield got rocked by an enormous earth boom. Everyone got thrown into the air and off each other. When Tails landed back on the ground, free of Scourge's hold, he realized what the only thing that could've been was: Knuckles' Ground Pound.

Surely enough, Knuckles came into sight right then, powered up in his Earth form. "Well would you look at that. Knuckles saves the day, AGAIN!" he said cockily. Sure Tails still secretly found it irritating as hell, and that having Knuckles talk in the third person was no better, but he was glad he had saved him, and a few others too.

"Thanks…Knuckles…" Tails choked out, gasping for breath. "But… how did you… know we needed… your help?"

"Ryan sent us a message."

"Wow.."

Just as the enemies prepared to attack again, six bolts of electricity shot down from the sky and electrocuted them. Then Sonic showed up in his Electric form.

"Too easy!" he said. The bolts stopped and Wave and Eggman collapsed on the ground. "Two Kos in one shot! Yeah!" Sonic boasted.

Blaze, Manic, Amy, and Sonia then showed up. Blaze scorched Metal Sonic and Espio, Amy flattened Scourge with her hammer, and Manic and Sonia shot at Silver from their helicopters.

Ryan dragged all his weak teammates together. "Thanks, Ryan. I'm proud of ya." "Thanks, Tails. It was nothing…" Ryan stayed with them until the battle would be over. Not much longer now…

Blaze, Knuckles, and Sonic collected their energy, and all at once unleashed it in a massive shockwave. Once any of the enemies got hit by that, they would get knocked out.

When they were defeated, a proud Amy piped up, "TA-DA!" Everyone clapped. Everyone who wasn't too injured to do so anyway.

Blaze pulled out a ray gun and aimed it at the group of unconscious enemies. She pulled the trigger and they all vanished. "Woah! What was that?" Ryan asked, very surprised.

"Transporter ray." Blaze simply replied. "Why didn't you just use that at the beginning?" he asked again.

"Nah, it's against the law to use it on a conscious being, so we aren't allowed until we knock 'em out first!" Knuckles answered.

"Come on, let's get these guys back to HQ." Blaze proposed.

As Ryan helped Tails and tried to help Shadow who would refuse since he's an "Ultimate Lifeform", he couldn't help himself from thinking about his journey so far.

(If this is what the first week here is like, I can't imagine what will come next. This should be interesting…)

xXxXxXx

A/N: And that's the seventh chapter!

Well, was it good? I can't tell, these guys won't give any useful advice, so please review!

Everyone: Hey!

Sonic: That's disrespectful!

Me: Uh-huh, whatever…

Well that was a long battle, I hope it was good.

And thanks to Chaos Controller15, Unwatered, and SSXfanatic once again for being so awesome!

Thanks for reading everyone, and see you next time for a brand new chapter on January 3rd!

Hope you liked it, and please R&R!


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Ok, we're back with the eighth chapter of my first story ever: Journey For Friendship!

Knuckles: We get it!

Me: Yeah, yeah, whatever! All right, we'll just get on with the story, and I'll talk at the end.

Marine: Shouldn't there be a disclaimer, mate?

Sonic: Yeah, and here it is! He does NOT own any of us Sonic characters, SEGA does! See, faster than the speed of sound! No sweat!

Cream: Um, that makes no sense…

Me: Well, that'll have to do. I guess…

Well, enjoy! I hope you like it!

xXxXxXx

*Normal POV*

Once Ryan had helped his injured teammates back to their room, he put them to bed to rest. He had difficulty helping Shadow, since he wouldn't really let him.

Over the next week, nothing special happened. Seriously, NOTHING HAPPENED.

There were some interesting conversations at dinner time each evening, however.

After the battle, Shadow, Tails, Marine, Tikal, and Rouge stayed in their rooms to rest while the others went to dinner. This was actually the first time Ryan had gone to the dining area, so he got Manic and Sonia to lead him there.

Once they arrived, Ryan realized that the dining room was the room that he had first entered when he was brought to the IPIA. The one with the high ceilings and the two long tables that were now pushed together and decorated with candles, utensils, and fancy place settings.

The three of them were the last to arrive tonight. Ryan grabbed a seat between his cousin and Sonic. Amy was on Sonic's other side, and Shadow's empty seat on Blaze's other side. Knuckles was across from Ryan, and Sonia, Manic, and the rest of the empty spots were along the same side. Finally, Master Cream sat at the very end, to have a view of everyone.

"Dinner is served! Caesar salad and steak!" she said happily. "Wait, we can have 25 TVs in Tails' room, but no personal chefs to cook for us?" Ryan asked.

"We don't need chefs when we have Master Cream." Blaze pointed out. "Is that why she's our Master?" Ryan asked. "That, and she's wise, smart, educated in science and technology, and she treats us very well!" Sonia answered.

"Thank you, Sonia." Cream said. "I can see your point, Sonia." Ryan stated.

"Suck up." Knuckles whispered to Manic. He got no response, but he did get a smack upside the head from Sonia.

"So where exactly did those enemies go?" Ryan questioned. "After Blaze used the transporter ray, right?" Amy asked. "Yeah." Ryan confirmed.

"Duh." Knuckles whispered again. Manic chuckled at this, but both Sonia and Blaze also heard. So simultaneously, Knuckles got smacked-again-, and Manic got kicked by Blaze underneath the table. "Shut up!" she silently hissed.

"Hm? You say something?" Ryan asked. "Yes. They were transported back to their base. We don't harm them, nor do we kill. That is the law." Blaze replied confidently.

Knuckles rolled his eyes at her quick recovery. Sonia saw that, and well… you know what happened next. She smacked him.

"You're lucky you're already red, or people might start wondering what that giant, red mark on the back of your head was from!" Sonia said condescendingly.

Everyone stared at the two of them. Sonia had forgotten to whisper. "I think you both have some explaining to do." Cream said.

THE NEXT DAY AT DINNER…

"So, Ryan. I've been doing some more research on your DNA. And I must say, it's very different than the type we're used to seeing." Blaze said to her cousin before eating a mouthful of shrimp.

"Different how?" an intrigued Tails asked. "I'm not sure yet, but I can sense that I will find out soon. I'll let you know when I find out." she answered.

"Thanks, Blaze! That sounds very interesting!" Tails said. "I think that sounds great!" Ryan exclaimed. Everyone nodded in agreement-except Shadow.

"Right, Shadow?" Ryan asked. "Uh…yeah!" Shadow replied, looking up from his plate and going with the crowd and smiling. When Ryan looked away, however, he instantly stopped "smiling" and rolled his eyes.

Sonia was sitting beside him tonight, and she spotted that. So… he got smacked.

He growled in return. "Piss off, Sonia."

Everyone looked at them. Master Cream had been watching quietly as their situation unfolded. She sighed, "I think I'm starting to see a trend here…"

THE NEXT DAY AT DINNER…

"Hey, Shadow?" Tails asked. "What?" Shadow replied in an annoyed tone. "Weren't you going to explain some stuff about Silver's clan to Ryan the other day, but you never got to it?" Tails answered. "Yeah, he never did. Could you now, Shadow?" Ryan said. "Yeah, Shads! Come on!" Sonic exclaimed.

"Don't call me that, Sonic! But fine… I will." Shadow replied.

Tails, Ryan, Sonic, Rouge, Amy, Marine, and Manic listened in as the others were having separate conversations.

"Alright," Shadow started. "Silver, -the leader of his clan- used to be the third guardian here, along with Blaze and Knuckles. He betrayed us, and left to form his own clan. He says he doesn't kill, just like us. But we aren't sure…"

"He's that white hedgehog that had showed up, right?" Ryan asked. "He insists that he's silver, but yeah, that was him." Tails confirmed.

Shadow continued, "So he's been holding a big grudge against us ever since our… disagreement."

"Come on, tell 'em what the disagreement was!" Marine semi-begged.

"Back then, we had hypothesized that there were seven Elements. But the three guardians did some research and determined there was an eighth. However, we agreed that it was the Element of Light, but he refused. He was sure that he was right about it being the Element of Darkness instead. He has been determined to find someone that possesses the ability to control this 'new Element' ever since." Shadow explained.

"He keeps comin' at us, you know? And for what?" Manic questioned. "For nothing!" Amy exclaimed, clearly puzzled and slightly agitated.

"And they haven't given themselves a proper name, so we just call 'em Silver's clan." Tails interjected.

"I just wish he would come to his senses." Sonia said, from her isolated seat where Master Cream had put her for tonight's dinner.

"I think he should go shit out all the crap he's gotten from being away from reality all this time." Sonic said.

"Sonic, don't swear!" Amy exclaimed as she smacked him. "Good job, Amy!" Sonia praised. "Thanks!"

Master Cream facepalmed.

THE NEXT DAY AT DINNER…

Sonia AND Amy had isolated seats tonight.

"Good news, Ryan!" Blaze said to get her cousin's attention. "I've found how your DNA is different!"

"That's great! Tell us more!" Tikal said excitedly.

"Well…" Blaze began. "Ryan will be able to control an element, but not by himself. He would need to have someone else to absorb some of their Element Energy to power up."

"Who?" Rouge asked. "I don't know yet…" Blaze admitted.

"Are you sure? That idea seems a bit far-fetched." Tails said. "If someone heard of how you absorbed the Element of Nature from Cosmo when she passed, or the same for Shadow, the Element of Ice, and Maria, I think they'd say THAT sounds far-fetched!" Knuckles pointed out.

"You're right…" Tails admitted. "Is that really what happened? You two got your powers from Cosmo and Maria?" Ryan asked. "Yep, from our best friends." Tails replied, while looking at Shadow.

"What's up with him?" Ryan asked quietly. "This time of year he usually gets irritable and grumpy." Tails replied, keeping quiet."

"What exactly is 'this time of year'?" "His birthday." "Ohhh…" "But whatever ya do, DO NOT get him a gift." "Okay, understood."

Ryan ended their quiet conversation and started a louder one. "Alright, everybody!" What are we gonna do tomorrow?"

"Argh, he asks SO MANY QUESTIONS." Knuckles mumbled to himself. Marine heard him, and she smacked him.

"Like that?" she asked Sonia.

Master Cream simply got up and walked away.

xXxXxXx

A/N: TA-DA! That's the eighth chapter!

Well it was a filler chapter, just trying to clear up some stuff and put out some info. But the next chapter will be Shadow's birthday party!

Shadow: Oh joy…

Me: Anyways, you can expect another update before the end of January, considering I have to work on more artwork, write the first chapter of my new and upcoming story: SSSX – Super Sonic Snowboard Cross: In stores January 30th!

Well this story is out on the third like I said. So what if it's 11:58pm, shoot me!

Cream: *Cocks gun*

Me: Not literally! And somebody get that gun away from the six-year-old!

Well, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, so please review!

Sonic: Please! We're desperate! We'll do anything!

Me: Good idea! The 25th reviewer will get to choose a dare for Sonic, Amy, Shadow, and Knuckles to do!

Shadow, Knuckles, Sonic, and Amy: WHAT?

Me: Well, this was fun, and I'll see you next time!

Thanks to my readers, you're the best!

Hope you liked it! And please, R&R!


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: Hello! I'm finally back with a very lengthy chapter of Journey For Friendship!

I'd like to thank all my readers for reading this far, you're all great and are giving my great inspiration to keep writing.

Disclaimer… um…

Blaze: Alright, I'll do it. We are not owned by this writer, we are owned by SEGA. There, how was it?

Me: That was good. But… I think the readers should vote on who should star in the A/N sections of the story. The two characters with the most votes will star in one chapter!

Shadow: Let's start the fic.

Me: Hey! That's my line! Anyway, hope you like it!

xXxXxXx

*Ryan's POV*

"Quiet, everybody! He's due back any second!" Tails said in a hush tone to the rest of us. We were currently hiding throughout our room waiting for Shadow to return so we could throw him his surprise party. It was Sonic's idea, and for some reason the others didn't seem so enthusiastic…

The front door knob wiggled. "Quiet! He's here!" Sonic whispered as we all pressed deeper into our spots. (No way, I had NO idea…)

Shadow walked in and flicked on the lights. At our cue, we all jumped up and screamed, "SURPRISE!" He simply crossed his arms, "Wow, I am SO surprised."

"What? But nobody told you, and you obviously didn't hear us…" Sonic thought out loud. "Guys, you were too loud!" Everyone simultaneously facepalmed.

xXxXx

A while later, we were all talking in small groups. I was with Tails, Sonia, Shadow, and Manic.

"So, bro. No presents again?" Manic questioned as he slapped Shadow's shoulder. Shadow had a step-away-from-me-right-now-or-else-I-kill-you-and-all-the-descendants-of-your-family-because-I-am-seriously-pissed-off look on his face, but Manic didn't seem to take the hint. Tails stepped in before anyone's glare vaporized anyone else.

"No, he doesn't like them. We should be grateful that he allowed the cake." Tails said. "Speaking of cake…" Sonia hinted. "Oh, yeah!" Tails raised his voice, "Come on, everybody! Let's go have cake!"

Cheers followed that all important sentence. "But I have a card…" I mumbled, not really intending to be heard. "Ooh!" Sonic exclaimed and snatched the envelope from my hands and shoved it in Shadow's face, "Open it, buddy!"

Shadow growled in response. "Oh no, I'm sorry, Ryan. I thought that you knew that presents included cards to not give him…" Tails apologized. "Oh…" I replied sadly. "But he could accept just this once, right?" I asked hopefully.

Shadow sighed, "Ugh, fine. But only this once!" He popped open the envelope and read the card aloud.

"Happy birthday, Shadow! I hope all your wishes come true! Your friend, Ryan." he read and closed the card as he started to chuckle.

"What's so funny?" I asked. He just continued to laugh like a mentally unstable psychopath. "What it is?" I repeated. This was getting uncomfortable.

"You actually think… that you're my friend?" Shadow said, still laughing. "Well, yeah. Of course we're friends!"

He kept laughing, "You seriously got that from me?"

"Yes! But what's so funny?" I asked.

He suddenly ripped the card and threw it on the ground as he abruptly stopped laughing. "You think you're my friend?" he started to raise his voice.

"Um, yeah. Geez, Shadow, calm down." I replied. He got really close to me. "You aren't! Are you that stupid?"

"Excuse me?" "Shadow, it was just a card…" Tails tried to intervene.

"Shut up, Tails!" he snapped, not removing his eyes from mine. "This dense idiot thinks he's my friend!"

"Hey! I'm not dense, and I'm no idiot, you called me your friend before!" I retorted. "Wrong. You called yourself my friend. I simply lied to get out of an awkward situation, something you CAN'T do."

"You lied?" I asked, extremely surprised.

"Of course I did. Do you really think that someone just changes in the blink of an eye? Because they don't. Especially not me. That's not how life works. Because life isn't fair! Don't you get that? Friends will never be real, only taken away. That's why you will NEVER be my friend. NEVER!"

Tails wanted to step in, but Sonic stopped him. "Stay here, Tails. Ryan's gonna blow."

"You lied to me, just to get me to stop nagging you?" I asked rhetorically. "Well, yeah! What did you expect?" Shadow replied. "I expected you to stay true to your word. I expected you to value friendship like I have learned to. I expected you to not be such an asshole about a freaking birthday card!"

"Well it seems that you were expecting all the wrong things, because you don't deserve my friendship. Nobody does!" Shadow seemed to finish, but Ryan sure wasn't.

"That was a terrible decision for you to make. You decided that instead of being responsible and trying to repair your ways like you said you would, you lied straight to my face, and you have been for the last week!" "Who cares if what I di-" "I'M NOT DONE YET!"

Everyone shuffled back a couple steps at my outburst. "Wow, not many people have the courage to talk to Shadow like this…" Tails whispered to Amy.

"You know, before I met all you guys, I was a lot like you. I thought that everything would be better if I just did everything by myself. I thought that nobody cared about me, and that I shouldn't care about them either. I thought that friends were a weakness, not a strength. But now I know I was wrong. Life is better WITH friends, because friends care for you, help you out, back you up when you're in trouble, and love you no matter what. Friendship is an incredible strength, but you just don't understand. You insulted me, made me feel unwanted, and ignored me, and then you comforted me, but all as a lie! You said you'd change, you hugged me, you told everyone you'd improve, and you led me to think we were friends, and it was ALL a lie! Do you have any idea how wrong that is?"

Shadow didn't answer.

"I come to the IPIA, and meet all these wonderful people. I try my best to fit in, be liked, be accepted. I succeed. At least I thought I did. Now I know I didn't, because I'm not your friend. I really thought that for once in my life, I was being accepted and not being a failure. But you've shown me that I was wrong. Thank you, Shadow. Now I know that my new trust for people wasn't supposed to be. You have ruined me, you know that? Now, friendship is not an option, just like you wanted. I hope you're happy now, because that's what Maria would've wanted. If you aren't, I don't know what she would say right now. I do know that what you did was very, very wrong, and everyone here agrees. Including Maria. It's just… so… wrong…" I said as my lip started to quiver. No, this couldn't be happening. I don't cry, I never have. But I've also never been dug into so deeply. I have to leave now.

I ran out of the room as fast as my legs would take me, leaving behind a baffled, surprised, and emotional audience.

xXxXx

*Normal POV*

Everyone was frozen on the spot due to the surprising event that had just taken place. Even Shadow, who wasn't taken by surprise easily at all, was wondering what he had done to cause _that_.

"You sick, arrogant idiot!" Sonia finally yelped. "Do you have any clue what you just did?"

"He just broke an innocent heart!" Amy exclaimed angrily. "All because he gave you a birthday card?" Knuckles yelled.

"I think it's time for the people who 'don't deserve your friendship' to leave." Sonia stated darkly. Everyone nodded in agreement and filed out of Shadow's room.

"I don't know what goes on in that head of yours, Shadow. But I do know that went on inside it today, was the worst thing that could have." Rouge commented sadly as she closed the door behind her, leaving behind only Tails and Shadow at the ruined birthday party.

Tails picked up the ripped card from the floor. He observed it and sighed. "Shadow… why?" Shadow was still staring at the door. "Sit down." Tails ordered. Shadow surprisingly slowly complied.

"Listen, Shadow," Tails took a deep breath. "Hopefully now you understand how you made Ryan feel by doing that stuff to him. Everything he said was true, and was very painful for him to let out." Shadow was still silent, so the fox continued. "When you told Ryan you were his friend, that was a big thing for him. He thought that he had succeeded, that you trusted him, and would be there for him like friends are. I think he's recently realized that friendship is a good thing. But I'm not so sure what he thinks now…"

Shadow sighed very loudly and planted his face in his hands. "Shadow? What's wrong?" Tails asked. "I understand…"

"What? What do you understand, Shadow?" Tails questioned again, thinking he might have finally gotten somewhere. "I understand what I've done to Ryan…" Shadow replied. "And?"

"I'm a horrible person, Tails…" "Well, you were the last time you 'talked' to him." Tails said. Shadow lifted his head from his hands, "How can I make it better?"

"Go find Ryan, and figure it out for yourself." Tails replied sternly. He had never given Shadow an _order _before…

"Alright," Shadow said as he stood up, sounding composed once again. "But I think it's best if you don't come with me."

"I agree. I'll stay." Tails said. "Good luck."

"I don't need your luck, I need Ryan's forgiveness." Shadow stated determinedly as he left.

"I hope all goes well…" Tails murmured to himself.

xXxXx

*Shadow's POV*

I had made my way outside to look for Ryan. I have to find him to set things right. I don't know what I've been thinking… I lied to him, and I burst out at him because he called me his friend. Ugh, I'm such a monster… But I must at least set things right, because that _is _what Maria would've wanted.

*Ryan's POV*

As soon as I got out of there, I ran outside and found the most comforting place I could find. A small hill with a single tree upon the top.

I made my way there, and sat down with my legs drawn up to my chest. I wasn't in the best of moods.

I felt the scar over my left eye. Shadow had done this to me. He had apologized for it, hugged me, promised me he'd change, and called me his friend. But this whole thing was fake! I had finally thought that friendship wouldn't hurt me, but Shadow sure proved me wrong. Friendship is stupid, pointless, and has hurt me more than anyone could relate to. I can't trust anybody, because they don't really care about me.

And even though this is truly painful, I will not cry. I never have. Even when my parents died, I didn't. I was too shocked to shed a tear. But this has been eating at me my entire life, as the worst nightmare I could ever have, and to have Shadow voice it all as reality, is almost unbearable.

For the first time ever, a tear slipped down my cheek.

And it wouldn't be the last…

*Normal POV*

Shadow had finally found Ryan. He approached the creature he had come looking for whose face was buried in his hands, being as quiet as possible. A turquoise ear flicked at the sound. Ryan slightly raised his head to reveal his tear-stained face to whoever was visiting him. He realized it was Shadow, and he once again hid his face.

"Ryan?" Shadow asked, testing the feline's reaction. "Go away, Shadow. I don't want to talk to you." he replied with a sniffle. Shadow sat down beside him.

"Ryan, I know what I did was terribly wrong, and I can't change the past, but you have to hear me out." Ryan said nothing, so the black hedgehog continued.

"I know what it's like to be lied to, and I know it does NOT feel good. Especially when it's somebody you trusted who's lying to you. And when it's something you have recently changed about yourself that is revealed to be a detriment to yourself, it hurts even more. Believe me, I can relate."

"No you can't!" Ryan piped up. "You couldn't possibly have gone through as much emotional stress as I have!"

"Ryan, I have seen the closest person to me die. Watched as my whole life seemed to go down the drain. Experienced extreme discomfort around anyone from that point because I couldn't trust them, and didn't want anything to do with them. And so have you. I get that. But…"

"But to know that I caused someone to go through that because of what I did, is horrifying to me. When I realized that I'm not the only one who has gone through trauma in their life, and came to my senses, I had to repair what I had done to you."

"So you think another simple apology is going to make everything better again?" Ryan asked with retardation. "It sure won't this time, because I've had my share of being lied to by you." He wiped away his tears, "I won't let myself be dragged into something useless like this again. I don't want to feel helpless anymore! I don't want to be used, and treated like I don't have feelings! Because I may be able to keep them bundled up, but they're there! I don't want it, Shadow! I don't!"

Ryan's tears had started to flow again and his face had scrunched up in anger, sadness, and fear. Shadow had seen that face on Maria once, and it was not a pretty sight when the only thing that calmed her down was burying her face in a pillow. There weren't any pillows out here, but he did remember hearing that his chest fur was like a pillow…

On impulse, Shadow shoved Ryan's face into his chest and stroked the trembling figure. The cat panicked more at first, but seemed to relax in Shadow's embrace. He was hugging him again, but with sympathy this time. His gestures were as comforting as could be, an amazing feat for a creature like the black hedgehog. He seemed to be trying to soothe him, to make him feel better. Something like this couldn't be faked, nor acted up, nor created. This was real.

"It will be okay, I promise. Those things won't happen to you again. I'll make sure you don't feel helpless. I'll make sure you always feel wanted. I'll make sure you can express yourself however you want. Because everyone deserves that, and it honestly breaks my heart to see someone like this. I don't want you to feel bad, I just had my feelings bundled up like you did, I suppose. I'll make sure you don't have to feel like this again, but only if you want me to…" Shadow soothingly said with the most truth he had ever used since Maria had been with him.

"I would like that… But what you did still hurts! It can't just disappear into thin air!" Ryan replied, face still in Shadow's fluffy chest fur. He hated to admit it, but that hedgehog had somehow calmed him down from what had happened before. Now, he even wanted to forgive him, but it just wasn't that easy…

"I truly am sorry. But I don't know what else I can do to make this better. I'm not proud of what I did, but I can promise to never let it happen again."

"You expect me to trust that you're being sincere _now_?" Ryan questioned. "After how you tricked me last time?"

"I hope you can find the true you inside your heart to do that, yes."

Shadow was right. The real Ryan, buried underneath all the conflict, emotions of anger, intimidation, sadness, and confusion, and difficulties, wanted to forgive Shadow and just start over. Maybe if Shadow could show him how to trust once more…

"Shadow?" Ryan asked, trembled voice still muffled.

"Yes?"

"Do you think you could show me how to trust again?" he said, looking into crimson eyes.

"I believe I can. But that would depend on if you'll let me. You would need to leave the past as past, and let the future be the future, but live in the present to live life to the fullest and trust…"

"I will." Ryan rested his head back in it's original position. "But only of you help me."

"I promise."

Ryan wiped away his tears and finally smiled. Shadow had come through when he had to, just like friends do. He had promised that he'd do everything in his capacity to help me believe in him again. Ryan nuzzled into the hedgehog's gentle hold again, appreciating the effort that Shadow was putting in to comfort him.

And the hedgehog had been right. Instead of dwelling on the past, or worrying about the future, living in the present and learning the lesson that each day has to teach you is the way to live. Forgiving is better than holding a grudge, and much less forbidding.

With Shadow's hand still comfortingly rubbing Ryan's head, this was a very relaxing moment. They could stay here for a long time, just letting their friendship repair itself. Or…

"Aww, how adorable. Shads has a soft side!"

Sonic could show up and ruin everything.

Ryan raised his head to see Shadow roll his eyes and turn around with him to spot Sonic behind them, pretending to admire Shadow's kindness.

"Well, you guys seem to have sorted everything out, so let's go!" Sonic exclaimed. "Whatever…" Shadow mumbled as Sonic sped back inside.

"Alright, so we're all good? Forgetting what happened and starting fresh?" Shadow asked.

"Yes. We'll do our best." Ryan replied with a smile.

As they walked back together, Ryan corrected himself in his own thoughts,

Shadow, I will forgive, but I will never forget…

xXxXxXx

A/N: Wow, it's done! This was a difficult chapter to write, so I'm hoping it turned out alright for you guys!

I'd like to thank my dedicated readers for still reading after nine chapters! And also, check out ChaosController15 and Shadline the Wolf's stories. They are amazing, and Shadline's story is strangely familiar too!

Anyways, again, thanks for reading. Now this story officially has over 20 000 words!

Sonic: You're talking so much, we haven't got a chance yet!

Me: Well, get used to it. Remember to vote on who you want in next chapter's A/N sections, and I'll see you next time!

The more reviews I get the faster I update, and when I get to my 50th, I'll give you a double update! Also, that dare for the four characters is still open since reviewer 25 was anonymous, so reviewer 27 gets to! So go go go!

See you next time, and bless your face!

Please R&R! =P


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